It was founded on 4 July 1987 by Surinamese leader Dési Bouterse, and was one of the first parties in the country to have a stable base of support across different ethnic groups.

In the 2015 general election the party scored 45.56% of the vote and 26 of 51 seats in parliament.

[3] NDP chairman Bouterse was elected President of Suriname on 19 July 2010, after he won the 2010 elections with his Mega Combination of which the NDP was the dominant party.

Dési Bouterse lost the presidency and he was succeeded by opposition leader Chan Santokhi.

[4] The NDP was formed from a reorganisation of the Vijfentwintig Februari Beweging (VFB, February Twenty-Five Movement),[5] a political movement established on 24 November 1983 by Dési Bouterse and the ruling military junta.