Centrist Democrat International

The Centrist Democrat International (CDI; Spanish: Internacional Demócrata de Centro, IDC) is the largest international political organization in the world bringing together center and center-right parties committed to defending democratic values, human rights, and the rule of law.

The CDI was founded on 30 July 1961 in Santiago, Chile, as the Christian Democrat World Union, reflecting the central role that Christian democratic parties played in its foundation. However, over the decades, the CDI has progressively expanded its identity and membership to include parties from a wide range of ideological traditions, and in 1999, it was renamed the Centrist Democrat International due to the participation of groups from other religions.

Today, it represents a broad political family committed to defending and strengthening constitutional democracy as the only viable system for guaranteeing freedom, pluralism, and social justice. To achieve this, the CDI works through its regional organizations.

The CDI's European division is the European People's Party, the largest European political party. Its African equivalent is the regional IDC.Africa, which has its own statutes aligned with the principles of the CDI. The CDI also works with think tanks such as the National Democratic Institute and the Wilfred Martens Centre (WMCES).