Slovene Christian Democrats. These three largest parties decided to form a government coalition, which soon became popularly known as the "grand coalition" (), under the leadership of Liberal Democrat Prime Minister Janez Drnovšek. Until March 1994, the Social Democratic Party of Slovenia also participated in this government coalition. On 29 May 1993, a congress was held in Ljubljana at which the constitutive members of the United List decided to form a unified party. The new party was named the United List of Social Democrats and Janez Kocijančič was elected as its president. The party remained in government until January 1996, when it left the ruling coalition in disagreement over the government's social welfare policies. Furthermore, several prominent members exited the party and re-established Democratic Party of Pensioners of Slovenia. In the general elections of 1996, the United List of Social Democrats suffered a substantial loss support, gaining only around 9% of the popular vote. Pahor era In the period between 1996 and 2000, the party remained in opposition. On the third National Congress of the United List of Social Democrats in 1997 a new party president, Borut Pahor, was elected. A gradual evolution towards more moderate positions started. In the election of 2000, the party rose to 12% of the vote and entered the centre-left coalition government led by Janez Drnovšek, while the party's president Borut Pahor was elected chairman of the Slovenian National Assembly. In the general elections of 2004, the party gained around 10.2% of the vote and went into opposition against the centre-right government dominated by the Slovenian Democratic Party. In the fifth party Congress held in 2005 in Ljubljana, the decision was taken to shorten the party name to the Social Democrats. Borut Pahor was confirmed as the party president, strengthening his positions against internal opposition from the left wing of the party. In the programmatic congress held in Nova Gorica in July 2006, the party clearly distanciated itself against its communist past, while its president publicly condemned the socialist regime in Slovenia and Yugoslavia established after World War II. After the internal crisis in the Liberal Democracy of Slovenia (LDS) following the loss of election in 2004, which resulted in the split of the party, the Social Democrats emerged as the main centre-left opposition force against the centre-right government led by Janez Janša. In 2007, several prominent members of the Liberal Democracy of Slovenia, including