Steven Forti is professor of contemporary history at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. His most recent book is Extrema derecha 2.0. Qué es y cómo combatirla.
Spain’s Socialist Party is Europe’s strongest center-left force, easily winning last Sunday’s Catalan elections. But it’s gaining at the expense of its own coalition partners, whose weakness risks bringing Pedro Sánchez’s broad-left government to its knees.
Pedro Sánchez has been reelected as Spain’s prime minister, but his broad-left majority depends on unstable allies. The far right is making wild allegations of an undemocratic coup — and is now urging judges and police to defy the government.
Spain’s king has asked conservative leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo to try to form a government. Most MPs oppose him — and recent deals between the Socialists, left-wing Sumar and Catalan parties show that the broad left has every chance of staying in office.
Before Sunday’s election, Spain looked set to be the next country with the far right in office. But the left-wing parties’ warnings of the reactionary threat worked, mobilizing voters to defend the gains they have made for working-class Spaniards.
The December 21 Catalan election saw a narrow pro-independence majority and a region more divided than ever.