Spain faces a stark left-right divide in a hot summer election

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By Guy Hedjkoi, BBC News, Madrid, Jul 23, 2023, 04:07 GMT

Updated 2 hours ago

photo caption,

Socialist leader Pedro Sánchez was an early voter in Madrid who called for a massive voter rally

Spaniards are heading to the polls in a general election that presents a choice between two starkly contrasting visions.

Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez voted in Madrid and called for significant participation.

Prime Minister since 2018, he hopes the government’s social reforms and handling of the strong economy will win over voters.

But his party has been trailing in opinion polls behind Alberto Núñez Figo’s conservative People’s Party, which may end up needing the support of the far right.

This is the first Spanish general election in modern times to be held in the sweltering heat of midsummer, when many Spaniards are on holiday.

Polling for Spain’s 37 million voters will continue on Sunday until 20:00 (18:00 GMT), although nearly 2.5 million have already cast their ballots by mail.

Mr Feijóo, 61, caused controversy during the campaign by questioning the management of postal votes.

The conservative leader wants to roll back several socialist reforms. If he turns to the Vox party for a majority in Spain’s 350-seat parliament, it would mean the far-right’s first participation in government since the end of Franco’s dictatorship in 1975.

Image source, Pierre-Philippe Marco

photo caption,

Conservative Party leader Alberto Núñez Figo (R) is eyeing victory but is unlikely to win a majority in Parliament

Vox leader Santiago Abascal is a Spanish nationalist whose popularity has been largely driven by fierce opposition to Catalan separatism and feminism such as anti-immigration policies.

“This will be a victory of progress over backwardness, the future over the past, the truth over lies,” Sanchez said. “The right is focused on telling lies, we are focused on coming back.”

Since 2020, Sanchez, 51, has led Spain’s first coalition government in modern times along with Unidas Podemos, to his left.

His administration has weathered the pandemic, a volcanic eruption on the Canary island of La Palma and the impact of the war in Ukraine, while overseeing a steady decline in the unemployment rate and one of the fastest growing economies in Europe.

However, these issues have come up far less frequently during the campaign than Mr. Sanchez would have liked. Instead, he faced harsh criticism for his government’s reliance on parliamentary support for Basque and Catalan separatists.

The right has portrayed Mr. Sanchez as a cynical power grabber, ready to deal with enemies of Spain’s constitutional democracy in order to stay in office.

Mr. Figo said that if elected he plans to reverse a series of reforms introduced by the left-wing government, including laws that address the legacy of Franco’s nationalist dictatorship and facilitate gender transition. He also wants to review new euthanasia and abortion legislation.

He begged the Spaniards to give him enough votes to “end the impasse” in the country’s politics. “A strong majority that does not need to rely on extremists is critical for us to move forward,” he said.

He came under pressure in the latter stages of the campaign due to his friendship with a notorious Galician drug dealer, Marcial Dorado, during the 1990s. Mr. Vigo said he was unaware of Dorado’s criminal activities at the time.

In the May regional and municipal elections, the People’s Party made gains as the Socialists and other left-wing parties suffered losses.

However, a new left-wing platform, Somar, was formed for the general elections, bringing together 15 parties under the same banner, including Unidas Podemos. Led by the charismatic Labor Minister Yolanda Diaz, Sumar aims to take third place ahead of Fox, thus giving Sanchez a chance to form a new coalition government.

PP and Vox have already formed dozens of governing coalitions and partnerships at the local level.

Left-wing parties warn that Mr Feijóo’s victory on Sunday will open the door for the far right to enter the national government, rolling back the rights of immigrants, women and the LGBTQ+ community.

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