Stage victory for socialists – Spain: Francina Armengol elected speaker of parliament – News

• The socialist Francina Armengol is the new speaker of the parliament in Spain.
• Surprisingly, she was elected with an absolute majority.
• This increases the chances of the socialist Pedro Sánchez to be re-elected as prime minister.
• Three and a half weeks ago the Socialists suffered a defeat in the parliamentary elections.

“This surprising stage success paves the way for Sánchez for another term in office,” said political scientist Paola Cannata in a special program on TV channel RTVE. In the panel discussion, everyone agreed.

Because to continue his government, Sánchez needs not only the support of several other parties, but above all a solidarity with the most radical of the Catalan pro-independence supporters: the Junts party, whose leader Carles Puigdemont lives in exile in Brussels. So far, an agreement has been considered unlikely. But the seven Junts MPs all voted for Armengol today.

This shows that, despite all the differences, there is a functioning channel of communication between the Sánchez and Junts socialists. According to a Junts announcement, there was initially an agreement on Thursday solely for the election of Armengol. The exact content remained unknown for the time being.

The price of a possible re-election

What is certain is that Puigdemont and Co. are likely to demand even more for Sánchez’s re-election as prime minister. The separatist boss, who is still a fugitive from justice in Spain, had called for an independence referendum in the past few weeks, which Sánchez should under no circumstances agree to.

However, in recent messages, the Catalan downplayed the game and said he wanted ‘demonstrable’ concessions from Sánchez. That could be amnesties or more self-government.

After the inaugural sessions of the House of Commons and Senate, talks between the parties on forming a government will enter the decisive phase next week. The danger of a month-long political stalemate has still not been banned, the TV talk show said.

Many alliances are necessary

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who has often been declared politically dead and has repeatedly been able to overcome resistance within and outside his own party, not only needs the support of junts and the left-wing electoral alliance Sumar, but also of several regional parties from Catalonia, the Basque Country, Galicia and the Canaries, all of which are predominantly nationalistic and have long wish lists.

Parallel to the difficult talks between the parties, King Felipe VI. probably hold consultations with all the parties represented in Parliament as early as next week. It is the monarch who must nominate a candidate for the post of prime minister. He doesn’t have any guidelines, not even a time limit. But that doesn’t mean he won’t take his time. Because he also knows about the risks of a “bloqueo”, a months-long political blockade, as Spain experienced in 2015/2016 and 2019.