Spanish Socialist party elects new leader today
MADRID — Spain’s bitterly divided Socialist party will choose a new leader Monday in a party primary that may determine whether or not conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s minority government will last.
The contest is widely seen as a two-way race between Susana Diaz, the president of the southern region of Andalusia, and former party leader Pedro Sanchez who was ousted in a bitter internal rebellion.
Ms. Diaz, 42, is the establishment favorite and is seen as more amenable to striking deals with the government if she wins the primary while Mr. Sanchez, 45, promises a more adversarial approach.
Rajoy’s minority Popular Party ( PP) government has relied on the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), the main opposition party, to pass key measures in parliament since it was sworn in for a second term in October 2016.
But Sanchez would have “a more fraught relationship” with the government and the risk of snap elections would increase with him in charge of the Socialists, Eurasia Group analyst Federico Santi said.
“At a minimum, therefore, a Sanchez-led PSOE would make parliamentary politics more challenging, and reduce the already limited space for economic reform,” he added.
Nearly 190,000 card-carrying members of the PSOE are eligible to vote in the leadership primary with the results expected after 9 p.m. (1900 GMT).
SLUMP IN POLLS
Ms. Diaz was widely tipped as the favorite but Mr. Sanchez has done better than many expected, gathering around 53,000 signatures for party members in favor of his candidacy, just 7,000 less than his rival.
A third candidate in the race, Patxi Lopez, the former president of the northern Basque Country, trailed the two by a wide margin.
Whoever wins the leadership faces a tough job ahead.
Like other Socialist parties across Europe, the PSOE has seen its support slump in recent years as voters flock to new formations like Podemos.
The party has lost the past three general elections, winning fewer seats in parliament each time.
The PSOE won just 85 of the 350 seats in parliament in last year’s general election, its worst showing since Spain returned to democracy following the death of longtime dictator Francisco Franco in 1975.
While the Socialists were busy with their primary vote, Podemos staged a large protest against corruption in Madrid on Saturday, a day after it filed a motion of no confidence against Rajoy, citing graft scandals affecting his ruling PP.
The motion lacks enough support from other parties to pass but could boost its appeal to voters angry at the government who would otherwise back the Socialists.