Right-wing pact for Andalucia
PP reaches separate agreements with centrists Ciudadanos and extreme-right wing party Vox
THE PP party has reaches two separate agreements, with centrists Ciudadanos and far-right wing party Vox, which will allow PP candidate Juanma Moreno Bonilla to become the new Andalucían president - and end almost 40 years of socialist party rule in the region.
The right-wing party reached a coalition agreement with Ciudadanos that will see its candidate Juan Marín become vicepresident and also handle key departments including economy, employment, education, equal rights and a new department in charge of reducing the excessive amount of civil servants.
While negotiations between PP and Ciudadanos have been pretty easy and have resulted in a ruling coalition, the PP still required the votes of Vox to ensure Sr Moreno would be voted in with an overall majority.
Late on Wednesday night, a difficult agreement was finally reached with the extreme-right wingers.
Vox had initially presented a list 19 conditions to support the PP - a list that was initially regarded as 'unacceptable' by the PP.
While Ciudadanos have refused to enter talks with Vox, the PP accepted a negotiation.
Vox's lists went from the accomplishable support to bullfighting and hunting, and the 'a la carte' education according to parents values, to the demand to eliminate all subsidies for domestic violence associations, the scrapping of national antigender violence laws and the immediate deportation of 52,000 immigrants in Andalucía.
The extreme right-wingers have also demanded the regional day is changed from February 28 (Dia de Andalucía) to January 2 to commemorate the Christian reconquering of Spain with the victory over the Moorish troops by the Catholic Monarchs at Granada.
Vox also demands education, justice, security and health authorities are handed back over to central government.
In the end, the PP has compromised and accepted some of the accomplishable demands by Vox such as education system changes, the support of bullfighting and regional customs (flamenco, Easter) and the opening of a new families department in the regional government.
The agreement has been criticized by many within the PP party itself and Ciudadanos continues to deny a three-way coalition.