Sunday February 14th 2021
Forecast: Conservative losers
Separatists win majority in Catalonia
The balance of power in the debate about a possible independence of the region of Catalonia from the rest of Spain has been readjusted: the separatist parties in Barcelona can probably rely on a majority, at the same time the socialists willing to compromise can book gains.
According to an unofficial forecast, separatist parties won most of the parliamentary seats in the parliamentary elections in Catalonia. Official results of the vote count were not yet available that evening. According to the forecast published by the state TV broadcaster RTVE immediately after the closing of the polling stations, all separatist parties together with a total of 73 to 78 members of the regional parliament in Barcelona can count on its 135 seats. The majority is 68 seats.
In view of the corona pandemic, voter turnout was significantly lower than in the 2017 election. At that time, it was a good 79 percent. The socialist PSOE ruling in Madrid, which is called PSC in Catalonia, has improved significantly. It could have 34 to 36 seats. She is against a secession of the region in the northeast of the country. But unlike the previous conservative government of the People's Party, the socialists are open to negotiations.
If the forecasts are confirmed, forming a government could be difficult. It is uncertain whether the two largest separatist parties, the left-wing ERC and the liberal-conservative JuntsxCat, will be able to agree on a government again as they did in the past legislative period. The differences in terms of the path to independence and in other areas of politics are great. In addition, the socialists are promoting talks about a settlement of the conflict.
A bitter defeat was on the horizon for the largest opposition party in Spain, the conservative People's Party. According to the forecast, it was overtaken by the right-wing populist Vox. The liberal Ciudadanos party, which lost a large part of its voters to other parties, experienced a crash.
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