Europe | Back to the centre

Spanish voters seem to hanker after stable centrist government

But they are still likely to end up with mavericks in charge

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in parliament — Sánchez weighs his optionsImage: Getty Images

Jun 29th 2023|MADRID

SINCE 1982 Spain has been led by only two political parties, the centre-left Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) and the centre-right People’s Party (PP). Those first three decades of restored democracy were the good old days, say many. Since the financial crisis of 2008, when a property bubble spectacularly burst, the party system has splintered. The radical-left party Podemos (“We Can”) arose out of fury with political and financial elites. Regional separatism gained momentum in Catalonia beginning in around 2012. And Vox, a hard-right party critical of immigration and cultural change, spun off from the PP.

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Back to the centre”