Spanish voters are discontent with Spain’s high unemployment figures. Politicians from all parties have responded and made job creation the center of their campaign strategy. According to Spain’s Center for Sociological Research, the second largest concern among Spanish voters is politicians. Distrust in politicians and a lack of faith in the political system are high as the Spanish government faces deadlock.
In the past decade, both Spain’s traditional left and right wing parties have splintered. The Partido Socialista Obrero Espanol (PSOE), founded in 1879, has been Spain’s traditional socialist party. They’ve lost a part of their base to Unidas Podemos (UP), which is Spain’s new far-left party founded in 2016.
Meanwhile, Spain’s traditional conservative branch, the Partido Popular (PP) has faced new challengers since it’s creation in 1989. In 2006 a new party called Ciudadanos (Cs), which translates to “citizens,” planted itself firmly in the center of Spain’s politics.
Unlike other European countries, Spain was familiar with only two major parties for much of its democratic history. Then, 2013 saw the emergence of a far-right VOX party. Now both the left and right in Spain are splintered.
In the 2019 general election, PSOE was the most popular party, however a failure to compromise with UP has left them scrambling. The PP lost millions of voters in 2019, with Cs and VOX targeting their base. Even a three party alliance between Cs, PP, and VOX would only give the right wing 43% of the legislative branch. However compromise between the three is important for the right wing to establish a unified opposition to the socialists. All of these factions have created a political traffic jam, and PSOE has only days left to secure a majority, or Spain will have to call entirely new elections.
Frustration with elected officials pushes voters elsewhere, and new elections could swing thousands of voters right into the hands of VOX.
In Oviedo, Spain, local leaders of VOX are working energetically from their small office. They don’t refer to themselves as a political party, instead as a movement. A movement to dismantle and replace the Partido Popular, who they say no longer represent the voice of the Spanish conservative.
Speaking to a room of American journalists studying abroad, local VOX representative Sara Alvares Rouco red from large index cards espousing VOX core principles. VOX considers all its supporters presidents or leaders of the party, taking a modern approach that wants to welcome citizens into public discourse they feel other parties are pushing them out of.
“Our two pillars that VOX is founded to uphold is Spain and Freedom,” says Rouco. Nationalism and the Spanish flag are part of VOX’s appeal.
“We also believe in unity for Spain under one large family.” This means VOX wants to strip power from Spain’s autonomous communities and consolidate under one national identity. The “Spain First” attitude could birth questionable policy, but VOX may soon welcome many more frustrated voters under their umbrella.