After Sunday’s election, a divided parliament left the PP and PSOE unable to secure a clear majority, forcing them to form coalitions or reach administrative agreements. On the right and on the left, led by Alberto Nuñez Feijóo, the leader of the PP, they look to guarantee the last few hours.
The PP – leader of the party with the highest number of votes – won 136 of the 350 seats in parliament. It confirmed this Monday that it is in talks with the UPN, Coalición Canaria, PNV and Vox.
“Since this morning, I have been in touch with various political forces with the aim of achieving a stable government,” Fijo said this afternoon.
“We cannot allow the Spaniards to trap us in blockades or blockades, nor allow us to Balkanize our country”The PP leader added.
Most pre-election polls predicted a comfortable victory for the PP in coalition with the far-right Vox party. However, the two parties combined reached 169 seats in Parliament, which would not allow them to reach the required majority of 176 representatives.
Indeed, a coalition between the PP and Vox with other regional and independent forces may be unattainable, largely because of Vox’s position, committed to its plan to reduce regional autonomy and centralize power in Madrid.
PSOE and Sumar achieved 153 seats, more than polls predicted. To achieve a majority in parliament, they also need the support of several separatist parties, particularly the Catalan and Basque forces.
With that possibility on the horizon, A former deputy of the Catalan electoral coalition, Jam Ascens, is negotiating a possible agreement with former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont on behalf of the Sumer coalition and vice-president Yolanda Díaz.This was reported by a Spanish newspaper on Monday El Pies.
The aim is to make it possible for a coalition government to be re-emerged, as happened in 2019. Therefore, the vote of the Junds per Catalunya, where Puigdemont still has great influence, will be decisive for the outcome of these elections.
“It is obvious that Spain is a pluralistic country and that we are in the best position to negotiate with all the parties that are called to reach an understanding and express a government for the social and diverse majority of our country. We believe that the knowledge of the Catalan political reality and its rapport with many places, calling for an understanding, will make it easier to reach an agreement. Therefore, to know the initial stages of the Catalan organizations and explore all kinds of agreements, on behalf of Sumer’s negotiation We are asking him from today to lead,” sources close to the Yolanda Díaz-led Sumer Alliance pointed out.
If PSOE/Sumar can secure the support of the Republican Left (seven representatives), PNV and Bildu (the Basque country’s pro-independence parties, with five and six seats in parliament respectively), the Junds will not be voted out of Catalonia to guarantee left-wing governance.
in the morning, Jordi Durul, general secretary of Junds per Catalunya, said Catalan independence supporters would take advantage of a “window of opportunity” and that the price of supporting the PSOE’s Pedro Sánchez investment included “amnesty and self-determination”.
On October 1, 2017, Catalonia held a referendum on the region’s independence. This popular consultation took place during a time of powerlessness in Madrid and took place under a heavy police apparatus and with hundreds of injuries. The “yes” vote for independence received 90 percent, and following this decision, then-President of the Generalitat, Carles Puigdemont, unilaterally declared Catalan independence. Many Catalan leaders were arrested. Others, like Puidgemont, fled the country.
Durul was one of nine Catalan separatists arrested in 2017 for their involvement in the independence bid and pardoned in 2021 by the then head of government, Pedro Sánchez. However, other former Catalan leaders remain on the hook, including Carles Puigdemont, who has been in exile in Brussels since 2017.
In early July, Puigdemont lost his immunity as a member of the European Parliament, the first step necessary to extradite him, and this Monday, the Spanish judiciary issued a new international arrest warrant.
So the decision for Spain’s future unexpectedly falls into the hands of the former Catalan leader, who may be extradited and punished by Spanish justice. He highlighted the irony of the moment through a Tweet.
“One day you are determined to form a government in Spain, the next day Spain orders your arrest,” replied Carles Puigdemont via Twitter.
One day you are determined to form the government of Spain, and the next day Spain orders your arrest. https://t.co/7e33rCzd6S
— krls.eth / Carles Puigdemont (@KRLS) July 24, 2023
In Spain, there is no time limit for nominating a candidate. But if the election fails at the first attempt, the representatives have only two months to vote again to the Congress to elect a prime minister. If that deadline fails, the country will go to general elections again.