Spain: Parliament Rejects Socialist Sánchez’s Bid to Form Spain’s Government | Wall Street Journal

The Spanish parliament on Wednesday rejected Socialist party leader Pedro Sánchez´s candidacy to form a center-left government in the first of two votes that will end or prolong the country’s 10-week-old leadership impasse. The conservative Popular Party of incumbent Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and the far-left Podemos party led the opposition to Mr. Sánchez, who lost the vote of confidence by a margin of 219 to 130. If Mr. Sánchez loses a second confidence vote on Friday Spain will face more weeks of bargaining among political parties represented in the parliament elected on Dec. 20 and the possibility of a new parliamentary election this summer.

Spain: Deal reached in Catalonia region to avoid new elections | AFP

A fiercely secessionist leader was elected president of the wealthy region of Catalonia thanks to a last-minute show of unity, giving fresh impetus to attempts to break away from Spain after months of infighting. The appointment of Carles Puigdemont, just hours before a deadline which would have forced fresh regional elections, drew an immediate rebuke from Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy. “The government won’t allow a single act that could harm the unity and sovereignty of Spain,” Rajoy warned in a live televised appearance in Madrid. Rajoy’s remarks came after Catalonia’s pro-independence faction that won regional parliamentary elections in September finally came to an agreement this weekend over who should lead the new local government.

Spain: Failed Catalan government makes another Spanish election more likely | Reuters

Catalan far-left party CUP said on Sunday it would not support acting regional head Artur Mas in his bid for another term, forcing new local elections and increasing the likelihood all Spaniards may have to return to the ballot box this year. The drawn-out process of forming a government in Catalonia echoes the political stalemate gripping Spain at a national level following an inconclusive general election two weeks ago. The prospect of new elections in Catalonia, most likely in March, increases the likelihood of a second general election this year as the receding threat of a strong Catalan government seeking a split from Spain will reduce pressure on Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s centre-right People’s Party (PP) and the opposition Socialists to form a grand coalition to stand up to a separatist Catalan administration.

Spain: Rajoy preparing government and Popular Party for fresh elections | El País

With the new year just begun, Spain is facing an unprecedented political situation. “The most likely scenario right now, with a much higher probability rate than any other, is that we are headed towards a new general election,” said one high-ranking official from the Popular Party (PP), which continues to hold the reins of power following an inconclusive election on December 20. Acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who has so far failed to secure enough support to get himself reinstated to a second term in office, has ordered his ministers to keep holding meetings and managing day-to-day affairs. The point is to avoid conveying the sense that the Spanish executive is on hold.

Spain: Prime Minister sees new elections in Catalonia as inevitable | Reuters

Spain’s acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on Tuesday that a new regional election in Catalonia was inevitable after its pro-independence bloc fractured over who would be the new government’s leader. Catalonia has been unable to form a government since an election in September due to disagreements between the pro-independence parties who together gained a majority. If a new candidate is not chosen before Jan. 11, new regional elections will be called automatically, acting regional head Artur Mas told a news conference on Tuesday. The most likely date would be March 6, he said. The failure to form a Catalan government mirrors a political stalemate gripping all of Spain following an inconclusive national election on Dec. 20, and increases the likelihood all Spaniards will return to the ballot box this year.

Spain: Catalonia heads to new election in March | Politico

Members of the small far-left Catalan party CUP (Popular Unity Candidacy) decided Sunday not to support a new term for the incumbent regional president Artur Mas, bringing down his plans for a pro-independence government and pushing the wealthy Spanish region towards a new election in March. The decision brought to an end months of negotiations between the pro-independence movement Junts pel sí (Together for Yes), which unites center-right and left parties, and the radical CUP, which wants Catalonia to leave Spain, the EU and NATO. The prospect of a new election in Catalonia, which only held its last regional vote at the end of September, adds to the political uncertainty in Spain after the December 20 national elections, in which no party — including incumbent Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s conservative Popular Party (PP) — got enough votes for a majority.

Spain: Socialists Will Block Rajoy’s First Bid for New Term | Bloomberg

Spain’s Socialists said they’ll vote against Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy if he seeks parliamentary approval for a second term, signaling drawn out negotiations over the shape of the next government. With anti-austerity party Podemos making clear they’ll vote against Rajoy’s People’s Party in all circumstances, the Socialists’ opposition means it’s almost impossible for the prime minister to renew his mandate at the first attempt. The Socialists’ deputy leader, Cesar Luena, declined to comment on what his party might do in a second round of voting, when an abstention from the group’s 90 lawmakers could be enough for Rajoy to get through. The Socialists and Podemos set out their positions in Madrid Monday after meetings of their respective party leaderships to chart a way forward following an inconclusive election that saw Rajoy’s PP lose its majority. With Sunday’s vote resulting in four main parties in parliament without any clear government constellation, jockeying has begun as the parties seek to adapt to the new political landscape.

Spain: Spain heads for coalition impasse | Politico

Spain is set for a period of difficult coalition-building after Sunday’s elections in which Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy‘s conservatives came first, but were far short of a majority and with no obvious coalition partner after the centrist Ciudadanos (Citizens) did worse than expected, finishing fourth. With 99.6 percent of votes counted, Rajoy’s Popular Party had 123 seats in the 350-seat national parliament, way beneath the 186-seat majority they secured in 2011. The Socialists (PSOE), who have alternated in power with the PP for nearly four decades, were second with 90 seats, while far-left Podemos (We Can) had 69 seats — including the regional coalitions they have forged in Catalonia, Galicia and Valencia — and the centrist Ciudadanos came fourth with 40. “We are about to begin a period that won’t be easy,” said 60-year-old Rajoy, who was first elected in 2011 and has earned the approval of the euro zone’s most powerful country, Germany, for tightening the reins on Spain’s spendthrift economy..

Spain: Spain gears up for most uncertain election in 40 years | Reuters

Spain faces its most uncertain national election in 40 years on Sunday with newcomer parties poised for big gains against the traditionally dominant conservatives and socialists, complicating efforts to form a stable government. The ballot will mark the end of the established two-party system that has held sway since the dictatorship of Francisco Franco ended in 1975, ushering in an untested and potentially volatile era of consensus politics. It will also offer the latest snapshot of the willingness of European electorates to abandon the mainstream center-right and center-left, following significant gains by populist parties since October in elections in France and Portugal. Opinion polls show the governing conservative People’s Party (PP) of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy will win Sunday’s vote but fall well short of an absolute majority.

Spain: Election Raises Unwelcome Prospect of Instability | Wall Street Journal

European eyes will turn anxiously toward Spain on Sunday. At the end of a turbulent year that saw a far left government take office in Greece and a left-wing coalition backed by communists empowered in Portugal, Spanish voters will go to the polls on Sunday to pass their verdict on four years of conservative government under Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who has led Spain through a period of extraordinary economic hardship following the country’s banking bust and now into recovery. Even before a vote is cast, the election promises to take Spain into uncharted waters. The old two-party system that has dominated the political landscape since the end of dictatorship in 1975 is being challenged by not one but two newly-arrived populist parties: the far left Podemos, a close ally of Greece’s Syriza party, and the centrist Ciudadanos, or “Citizens”.

Spain: Prime Minister says he’s open to pact after too-close-to-call election | Reuters

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, facing a likely slim win at the election on Sunday according to opinion polls, said on Wednesday he would consider a political pact to assure a stable government over the next term. Rajoy’s conservative ruling People’s Party (PP) which, over the last four years, has presided over one of the worst economic slumps in decades, is seen winning the election but well short of the parliamentary majority it has enjoyed since 2011. The PP’s three political rivals are close behind, with the traditional left-wing Socialists (PSOE) and newcomers including the liberal Ciudadanos and anti-austerity Podemos running neck and neck in the polls.

Spain: Ruling PP party consolidates lead, short of majority | Reuters

Spain’s ruling People’s Party (PP) held onto its lead in the last polls before Sunday’s general election, but looked set to fall well short of a majority, leaving the door open to potential pacts. Surveys published on Monday suggested the conservative PP would top the poll, with the main opposition Socialists (PSOE) and two newcomers, liberal Ciudadanos and left-wing Podemos, following closely behind. No new polls are permitted under Spanish voting rules after the end of today. The fragmented vote is unusual for Spain, where the PP and the PSOE have traditionally alternated in power. A deep economic crisis marked by soaring unemployment and corruption scandals has broken their dominance, leaving many seeking alternatives.

Spain: Landmark election for voters to gauge state of nation | Associated Press

In the main plaza of a wealthy suburban bastion of Spain’s ruling Popular Party, volunteers hand out campaign pamphlets trumpeting economic gains ahead of Sunday’s national election. Sipping an espresso nearby, toy company executive Miguel Sanchez describes the new Mercedes-Benz company car he’ll soon get, thanks to rising sales for his firm following years of tough times. Downtown in a trash-strewn blue-collar stronghold of the Socialist Party, unemployed lawyer Maria Uribe rails against sky-high joblessness, a seemingly endless string of political corruption cases, tax hikes and public service cutbacks pushed through Parliament in the past four years.

Spain: Catalonia Votes to Secede from Spain, But Not Yet | Fortune

Ratcheting up the tension in an already edgy relationship between the Spanish national government and Catalonia, the restive region in northeastern Spain, the Catalan parliament passed a resolution in which it “solemnly declared the initiation of the process of the creation of an independent Catalan state in the form of a republic.” Or, in other words, secession from Spain. The resolution is unlikely to lead to independence in the immediate future, but it inspired an equally solemn yet hyperbolic response from the central government in Madrid. “The government is not going to let this continue,” Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on Monday, announcing that the government would appeal the Catalan motion to Spain’s constitutional court. “We are committed to using all democratic means to defend democracy. We will use only the rule of law, but all the rule of law. Only the law, but all the law; only democracy, but all the force of democracy.”

Spain: General election set for December 20 | AFP

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Thursday announced that Spain’s forthcoming general election will be held on December 20. Rajoy, who announced the date in an interview with Antena 3 television, enjoys an absolute majority in parliament with his conservative Popular Party (PP), but opinion polls suggest support for the opposition Socialist Party is running close behind. Far-left party Podemos, which wants to loosen the grip of austerity introduced by Rajoy’s government since it came to power in 2011, is running in third place. If the Socialists and Podemos teamed up in a coalition, they could boot the PP from power, surveys suggest.

Spain: Catalonia’s election leaves Spain with a constitutional crisis | Financial Times

Sunday’s regional election results in Catalonia show that its citizens are pretty evenly divided between separation from and union with Spain — a plurinational state that must now rise to the challenge of how to accommodate ancient nations within it such as the Catalans and the Basques if it is not to break up. But first the electoral facts. Junts pel Sí, the main independence bloc made up of centre-right nationalists and centre-left republicans, came first with 62 out of 135 seats. With 10 more seats won by a separatist group of the radical left, there is a secessionist majority in the Catalan parliament. It is not a homogeneous majority: the leftist group wants to see the back of Artur Mas, president of the Generalitat, the Catalan autonomous government. Most important of all, the separatist camp presented these elections as a plebiscite for independence, but fell short of a majority of votes, with only 47.7 per cent — well below the crystal-clear majority it would need morally to justify a rupture with Spain.

Spain: Catalonia’s President to Face Court Questioning Over Independence Vote | Wall Street Journal

A court in Catalonia on Tuesday summoned the leader of the wealthy region for questioning for allegedly defying a constitutional court order and organizing a symbolic referendum on Catalan independence last November. The High Court of Justice of Catalonia called on regional President Artur Mas to appear Oct. 15 to explain his role in the symbolic vote in which 2.3 million people participated. The court is investigating a criminal complaint filed last year by Spain’s attorney general against Mr. Mas and two other Catalan officials shortly after the vote. The three officials were charged with four crimes each, including contempt of court and misappropriation of funds.

Spain: Catalonia election: what does victory for pro-independence parties mean? | The Guardian

With all of the 4.1m votes counted, the two pro-secessionist parties, Junts pel Sí (Together for Yes) and Popular Unity Candidacy (CUP), have won 72 of Catalonia’s 135 seats, giving them a majority. On paper at least, the two secessionist parties have the numbers they need to advance their pledge to declare independence within the next 18 months. But although the vote was billed as a plebiscite on independence, it was a regional parliamentary election. In such systems the legitimacy and mandate of any government comes from having a majority in parliament. For example, the People’s party (PP) of the prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, has a majority in the national parliament, having won 44.6% of the vote in 2011. In Britain, the Conservatives command a majority in the House of Commons with 37% of the popular vote. However, the slim margin of victory on Sunday means the two pro-independence parties, which have little in common apart from the desire to break away from Spain, will struggle to put together a stable government – and any administration they form is unlikely to last a full legislature.

Spain: A guide to Catalonia’s most important election ever | The Guardian

Catalonia heads to the polls on Sunday to elect the 135 members who will sit in the region’s 11th parliament. Billed as a plebiscite on independence, the vote will be the most important Catalan election since its parliament was first elected in 1980. Before the previous election (in 2012), the Catalan parliament adopted a resolution asserting “the right of the people of Catalonia to be able to freely and democratically determine their collective future through a referendum”. In the elections that followed later that year, the mostly pro-referendum parties – Convergence and Union (CiU), Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC), Initiative for Catalonia Greens-United and Alternative Left (ICV-EUiA) and the the Popular Unity Candidature (CUP) – won the most votes and seats.

Spain: Agree on referendum or face unilateral split: Catalonia to Spain | Reuters

The head of Catalonia’s regional government says a unilateral split from Spain is unstoppable unless the central government agrees to call a binding referendum on independence. Artur Mas threw down the gauntlet to Madrid less than a week before a local election which Catalan separatists have billed as a proxy vote on secession. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has repeatedly ruled out a breakaway by the wealthy northeastern region and opposed any attempt to hold a referendum. Mas did not expect matters to change after a national election due in December as not only the ruling People’s Party (PP) but also the opposition Socialists and the smaller Ciudadanos party oppose such a possibility. “I am very skeptical that a new Spanish government could offer a deal to Catalonia on holding a referendum,” Mas said in an interview with Reuters at the 16th Century Palau de la Generalitat regional headquarters.

Spain: Separatist parties could win Catalonia’s election – but can the province survive as an independent state? | Telegraph

Friday marks not just the National Day of Catalonia but the beginning of a high-stakes election battle. Catalonia goes to the polls on September 27 in a regional election that is being billed as a second vote on independence. Last year, in an unofficial referendum, 80pc voted to leave Spain, on a turnout of 40pc. A move for Catalan independence could throw the EU into a new political crisis and create havoc for the Spanish economy, which is only just emerging from a long downturn. Catalonia has traditionally been Spain’s industrial and economic powerhouse, but the separatist movement has been growing in strength for decades.

Spain: Catalonia Calls Election in New Bid for Secession From Spain | The New York Times

A year ago, secessionist movements were all the rage in Europe — until they were not. After a nerve-rattling campaign, Scots narrowly voted in September to remain part of Britain. Two months later, Catalonia’s drive for an independence referendum fizzled into a nonbinding vote after being thwarted by Spanish courts. But if Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy of Spain breathed a sigh of relief that the issue was behind him, he has reason again to worry. Catalan politicians have managed to revive the independence issue. Setting aside personal and political rivalries, they have formed a broad alliance of candidates whose aim is to turn a regional parliamentary election scheduled for September into a plebiscite on breaking away from Spain. Should their alliance secure a majority in the Sept. 27 vote, the secessionist leaders say they will proclaim independence within 18 months.

Spain: Catalonia poised to call early election as proxy independence vote | AFP

Catalonia is poised to call on Monday an early regional election that will serve as a proxy vote on independence from the rest of Spain, raising tensions with the central government in Madrid. If an alliance of pro-secession parties wins a majority, they will aim to split from Spain within 18 months, despite Madrid’s opposition, Mas has said. The regional government has already started setting up institutions of state, which would swing into gear if the pro-independence camp wins. “We are ready,” Mas repeatedly says during public appearances. Last week, Catalan officials presented plans for a future Catalan tax agency and adopted a decree paving the way for a public credit institution to be turned into a Catalan central bank.

Spain: King Takes Swipe at Catalonia Independence Leaders | teleSUR

As Catalonia rushes towards a de facto vote on independence, tensions are growing with Madrid. Spain’s King Felipe VI lashed out at Catalonia independence advocates Thursday, amid allegations Madrid is trying to block a vote on separation. In some of his sharpest comments on Catalonia yet, Felipe warned, “Public authorities are subject to the rule of law.” “Respect for the law is the source of legitimacy and an unavoidable requirement for living together democratically in peace and freedom,” he said during a speech in Barcelona. Although the address did not specifically mention Catalonian independence, the monarch’s remarks appeared to be directly aimed at separatist leaders.

Spain: Catalan parties make election alliance for independence | AFP

Parties seeking independence for Catalonia have forged an alliance for September regional elections that they hope will boost their drive to break away from Spain, sources said Wednesday. Leaders of the centre-right CDC party and left-wing ERC sealed a pact at a meeting on Tuesday, agreeing to run on a joint ticket on September 27, sources in both parties told AFP. Spain’s conservative national government fiercely opposes independence for the rich northeastern region, which wants to follow Scotland’s example by voting on its political future.

Spain: Voters Turn to Political Upstarts in Regional Elections | Wall Street Journal

Ada Colau burst onto the political scene as an indignada—one of the thousands of young Spaniards who have filled public squares in recent years to protest corruption and economic austerity. Now she’ll be called Her Excellency the Mayor. Ms. Colau’s narrow victory here over the incumbent reflected the public mood across Spain as voters in municipal and regional elections Sunday vented their anger at the establishment by backing upstarts. “This was the victory of David over Goliath,” Ms. Colau said after the win by her leftist coalition, supported by the year-old Podemos party.

Spain: Spain follows Greece as anti-austerity parties sweep local election | Telegraph

Europe’s Left-wing anti-austerity parties have claimed another victory after a surpise triumph in Spain’s local elections. The defeat of the two main parties that have dominated Spanish politics for more than 40 years means that a series of new Left-wing movements now hold the balance of power, inviting an unwelcome comparison with Greece. Across the country, even historical strongholds for the ruling Popular Party (PP) and the opposition socialist PSOE were rocked by the upsurge in support for recently formed groups, which can now hold the traditional parties to ransom as they try to form a ruling coalition. In all of Spain’s major cities, including Madrid and Barcelona, coalitions will be required.

Spain: Regional elections will be critical test for broken two-party system | The Guardian

Spain heads to the polls on Sunday for regional elections in 13 of the country’s 17 autonomous communities (Andalusia, Catalonia, Galicia, and the Basque Country having separate electoral cycles), for municipal elections to elect councillors on all 8,116 local councils, and for votes in the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla. The votes will be a useful prequel to a general election that will be called later this year. Since the last election in 2011, Spain’s political landscape has changed dramatically. The country’s two main parties, the centre-right People’s Party (PP) and the main opposition Socialist Party (PSOE), traditionally win a combined 75-80% of the vote. They are now polling below 50%. At the European Parliament elections last year they won 49.1% of the vote compared with 80.9% in 2009.

Spain: Election site in security cert warning screwup snafu | The Register

Website crypto problems on the Spanish online voting registration website are causing it to generate all manner of security warnings. Attempts to visit the sede.ine.gob.es site – run by Spain’s National Statistics Institute and introduced this year for municipal/regional elections – typically lead to users being confronted with a security warning. However, the warnings vary depending on the operating system and browser a surfer is using. Such website problems are sadly common, but the flaws in the Spanish voter registration website are more than normally important, since the site requests that users upload personal information, including copies of passports, ID cards and marriage certificates. El Reg learnt of the problem from reader Kulvinder Singh, who blogged about the topic.

Spain: Catalonia ‘suffered cyber attack in independence vote’ | AFP

Catalan authorities suffered a massive cyberattack while the region was voting in an independence ballot outlawed by Madrid, their leader said on Tuesday. On polling day Sunday, the regional government’s computer systems received 60,000 times more hits than usual in “hard, organised cybernetic attacks”, said its president Artur Mas. “They tried to take down the Catalan government’s computer systems.” He was speaking to reporters in his first public address since Sunday’s polls, in which 2.3 million people turned out to vote on whether the rich region should break away from Spain.