Jason MoorePalma09/05/2018 00:00
TW
0

Spain has moved to the right. According to the latest opinion polls if an election was held tomorrow the centre-right Partido Popular would win and the slightly more left-wing Ciudadanos would come second. The Spanish Socialist Party is now in third place, meaning that right-wing parties have a commanding hold over Spanish politics.

Ciudadanos is a relative newcomer to Spanish politics but its pro-business stance and tough line on the independence movement in Catalonia has won it much support. In fact, at the last regional elections in Catalonia, Ciudadanos was the most voted-for party. The latest opinion poll from the Sociological Research Centre (CIS) makes poor reading for the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE), which for many years was one of the heavyweight parties of Spanish politics ,exchanging power with the Partido Popular. The Socialists would win 22 per cent of the vote, while anti-austerity Podemos would secure 19.6 per cent.

The Partido Popular holds a minority in parliament after the last general election in 2016. Spaniards are expected to return to voting booths again in around 2020. The Partido Popular has been tarnished by a whole series of corruption allegations and Prime Minister Rajoy's inability to control the situation in Catalonia appears to have lost him and his party support. The face of Spanish politics is changing and there could be further shocks in store as we move towards the general elections.