The party of Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez suffered a significant defeat in the regional and local elections. The conservative People’s Party (PP) and the right-wing populist Vox, on the other hand, made strong gains.
After counting more than 98.5 percent of the ballots, Sanchez’s social democratic party PSOE received just over 28 percent nationally. The PP landed at 31.5 percent and, with an increase of over nine percentage points, is the new strongest force at municipal level.
Vox only achieved a good seven percent in the municipalities nationwide – but that is an increase of more than four percentage points. The PP could depend on Vox in many municipalities and cities.
Spain’s Prime Minister Sanchez has to stand for re-election in December
Around 36.6 million Spaniards were called to vote in twelve regions and 8,000 cities. The biggest setbacks for the PSOE were losses in the regions of Valencia, Aragon and the Balearic Islands, as well as in one of the party’s strongholds, the southwestern Spanish region of Extremadura. PSOE spokeswoman Pilar Alegria said at a press conference that the results were not “what we hoped for”. The left-wing Podemos, the PSOE’s coalition partner, also lost votes.
The PP’s gains suggest the Conservatives could replace the ruling left-wing coalition in December’s general election. Ignacio Jurado, professor of political science at Carlos III University, said the results gave the opposition a real boost: “The political map has completely changed.”
rb/fw (AFP, dpa, Reuters)
Source: DW
