A bloc party (German: Blockpartei) in politics may refer to a political party that is a constituent member of an electoral bloc. However, this term also has a more specific meaning, referring to non-ruling but legal political parties in an authoritarian or totalitarian regime (most notably Communist regimes) as auxiliary parties and members of a ruling coalition, differing such governments from a pure one-party state, although such parties are not considered opposition parties or alternative sources of power.