Social Christians (Italian: Cristiano Sociali, CS) is a Christian social-democratic faction within the Democratic Party, a political party in Italy. The group was founded as a party by trade-union leader Pierre Carniti and economist Ermanno Gorrieri and, since their foundation in 1993 in order to represent progressive Catholics and left-wing Christian Democrats in the Alliance of Progressives. In 1998 Social Christians contributed to the foundation of the Democrats of the Left and were later a faction within that party. In 2007 they were keen supporters of the foundation of the Democratic Party and most of its members were very close to the first party leader Walter Veltroni.