undemocratic and has compared its organisation to other Irish political parties such as Fianna Fáil. Sinn Féin maintains it is a bottom-up, not a top-down organisation and that, ultimately, decision-making comes from its annual Ard Fhéis and the votes of ordinary members. In 2020 Mary Lou McDonald dismissed suggestions that Sinn Féin, including herself, were controlled by "shadowy figures" as an idea rooted in sexism. In 2020 she stated "I have a strong sense that there is at least an undertone of sexism and misogyny in suggesting that our strings are pulled. I’m very stubborn. I’m very willful. I know my own mind and God help anybody who tries to pull my strings or tell me what to do". while in 2021 she stated that people needed to get over the "sexist" idea that "this woman couldn’t possibly be really the leader of Sinn Féin. Well guess what? I really am, boys". Ideology and policies Sinn Féin is an Irish republican, democratic socialist and left-wing party. In the European Parliament, the party aligns itself with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL) parliamentary group. Categorised as "populist socialist" in literature, in 2014 leading party strategist and ideologue Eoin Ó Broin described Sinn Féin's entire political project as unashamedly populist. The party has been classed as left-wing nationalist and left-wing populist in academia, noting that while Sinn Féin engages in the "us vs them" dynamic of populism, it does so by engaging in the language of "the people vs elites" without resorting to using anti-immigrant rhetoric. Social and cultural Sinn Féin's main political goal is a united Ireland. Other key policies from their most recent election manifesto are listed below: Sinn Féin believes in immigration, both to fill up vacancies in employment, if the system can properly integrate new immigrants and has the resources to do so, and also to "protect people fleeing persecution and war", but not in "open borders". The party also believes in faster application processing times for refugees, and in abolishing the Direct Provision system. Economy At the most recent election in the Republic of Ireland, Sinn Féin committed to: As of January 2022, Sinn Féin in Northern Ireland have committed to: Health At the most recent election in the Republic of Ireland, Sinn Féin committed to: Abortion Until at least 2007, the party was not in favour of the extension of legalised abortion (British 1967 Act)