Spanish Local Elections Cause a Snap
On May 28th, Spaniards went to the polls to vote in local elections, The first election since 2019 in Spain. The election was a statement on the current state of the government under the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE). The voters turned out against PSOE. Only losing 1% of the vote compared to 2019, the Socialist Party did lose its majority to the People’s Party (PP), a centre-right Christian Conservative party. The People’s Party gained over 8% since 2019, propelling them to a majority when it comes to local government.
Winners & Losers
The Socialist Party were not the only one to suffer. The entire left bloc suffered, with United We Can, an alliance made up of numerous smaller left and far-left parties, losing 7%, dropping from the 4th largest party to the 6th largest. A potential reason for this decline is the dissension among members of the alliance. Five of the parties of the United We Can alliance left to join a new left-wing coalition, joining Sumar, with We Can, the organizing party of United We Can, refusing to join the new coalition led by United Left’s leader. The People’s Party was not the only winner from the election, Vox, a far-right party, won 7%, growing from the fifth-largest to the third-largest party.
Snap Election
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has dissolved the Parliament and called for a snap election to be held in late July. “Although yesterday’s elections had a municipal … scope, the sentiment of the vote carried a message that went beyond that,” said PM Sanchez in a press conference announcing the snap election. If the results hold, a coalition government with the People’s Party and Vox would have enough members to form a government and would be able to oust the Socialist Party. If the new left-wing coalition or Socialist Party can improve upon the results from May’s election, a coalition government between the left-wing parties could keep power to the left. A coalition government may not form, resulting in another election until a coalition government can form.
