Spain: Pedro Sánchez Re-Elected as Prime Minister

Facts

• Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is set to form a new minority government with the broad left-wing Sumar alliance, after he secured 179 votes in the 350-seat parliament on Thursday, following a controversial amnesty deal with Catalan separatists.¹
• While he was backed by every left-wing and separatist group in Spain's hyper-fractured parliament, 171 lawmakers belonging to the center-right Popular Party, the nationalist Vox, and the conservative Navarrese People's Union voted against Sánchez.²
• This concludes a months-long stalemate that came in the aftermath of an inconclusive election in July, as neither the largest Popular Party nor Sánchez's second-placed Socialist Party secured enough support to establish a government.³
• However, the deal to pardon more than 300 people linked to crimes concerning Catalan independence since 2012 has reportedly outraged most Spaniards, with a recent poll indicating that more than two-thirds of the electorate oppose the amnesty bill.⁴
• While some 400 people protested outside parliament after the vote was concluded, Popular Party leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo called for a mass protest across the country on Saturday.⁵
• On Nov. 12, about 3M Spaniards reportedly took to the streets to protest against the amnesty project over claims that Sánchez struck a deal with violent separatists to try to stay in power illegitimately.⁶

Sources: ¹BBC News, ²Politico, ³The New York Times, ⁴Al Jazeera, ⁵Sky News and ⁶Breitbart.

Narratives

• Left narrative, as provided by El País English. Sánchez's victory further illustrates why the socialist leader has excelled in politics, garnering broad cross-party support and breaking records though he was thought to be done. The premier pragmatically adapts to the times, finding a way to navigate out of every complex situation — even the most challenging ones, such as reaching a deal with Catalonia's Junts.
• Right narrative, as provided by European Conservative. It's utterly outrageous that Sánchez has sided with Catalan coup plotters, as well as with the political arm of ETA, to stay in office after losing the general elections. He's a liar who would, without hesitation, accept the devil's help to sustain his grip on power, as nothing else matters to him. If left unchecked, Sánchez will destroy the rule of law and create a Bolivarian-style left-wing dictatorship.

Predictions