MADRID (AP) – The voters Spain is going to vote on Sunday in an election that could make the country the last member of the European Union to turn to the populist right, a change that would mean a major upheaval after five years under a left-wing government.
Here’s what you need to know about voting.
___
WHAT IS AT STAKE?
Those who know him in Spain say that Alberto Núñez Feijóo does not enter a political battle if he does not have almost every chance of winning.
Sunday’s Spanish election will be a battle between two left-wing and two right-wing parties coming together to form possible coalitions.
After watching his Socialists panic in May’s local and regional elections, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez surprised his spirited rivals by bringing up the general election from December to this Sunday.
Allegations of electoral fraud and electoral fraud are spreading in Spain ahead of the country’s crucial elections on Sunday.
Opinion polls indicate that the political right has an advantage in the elections, and this raises the possibility that a neo-fascist party will form part of Spain’s next government. The extreme right has not been in power in Spain since the transition to democracy after the death of former dictator Francisco Franco in 1975.
With no party expected to win an absolute majority, voters’ choice is essentially between another left-wing governing coalition or one between the right and the far-right.
The centre-right Popular Party, the favorite in the polls, and the far-right party Vox are on one side. They are presenting the vote as an opportunity to end “Sanchism,” a term the PP uses to sum up what it says are Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s dictatorial ways, radical leftist ideology and the government’s many lies.
In the other corner are the Socialists and a new movement called Sumar that brings together 15 small left-wing parties for the first time. They warn that putting the right in power will threaten Spain’s post-Franco changes.
___
WHY WERE EARLY ELECTIONS CALLED?
socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called the early elections a day after his Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party and its small far-left coalition partner, Unides Podem (United We Can), were locked in a hammering. local and regional elections May 28
Before that, Sánchez had insisted that his four-year term would end, indicating that elections would be held in December. But after May’s defeat, he said it is only fair that Spaniards decide the country’s political future without delay.
___
WHAT HAPPENED SINCE MAY 28?
The Popular Party emerged from the local and regional elections as the most voted party by far, giving it the right to take office in all but a handful of municipalities and one or two regions.
Since then, the PP and Vox have agreed to govern together in around 140 cities and towns as well as adding two more regions to the one where they already co-governed.
The Socialists and other left-wing parties lost political strength across the country, but after overcoming the initial shock, have regrouped and regained some ground, leaving the outcome of Sunday’s vote still unknown.
___
WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR EUROPE?
A PP-Vox government would mean another EU member has moved strongly to the right, a trend seen recently in Sweden, Finland and Italy Countries such as Germany and France are concerned about what this change would mean for the EU’s climate and immigration policies.
The two main left-wing parties in Spain are pro-EU participation. On the right, the PP is also in favor of the EU, but Vox is not.
The elections are coming while Spain is celebrating Rotating presidency of the EU Sánchez hoped to take advantage of the six-month mandate to show the progress his government had made. An electoral defeat for Sánchez could make the PP take the reins of the EU presidency.
___
WHAT ARE THE TOPICS OF THE CAMPAIGN?
The campaign has been dominated by extreme mudslinging from all sides, with left and right accusing each other of lying about their policies and past records.
The PP has succeeded in questioning Sánchez’s respectability by highlighting the many U-turns he has made and his alliances with small regional secessionist parties, something that alienates even some left-wing voters.
The left has wanted to convince voters that there is little difference between the two right-wing parties and that a victory for them would set Spain back decades in terms of social progress.
Almost all polls have put the PP ahead of the Socialists and Vox ahead of Sumar for third place. But it is said that 30% of the electorate is undecided.
With the election taking place in the middle of summer, millions of citizens are likely to be on holiday away from their usual polling places. But vote-by-mail requests have skyrocketed, and officials estimate voter turnout at 70 percent.
___
IS THERE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR A SURPRISE?
One surprise factor that could upset poll predictions is Add Up: the new broad-based movement of 15 small leftist partiesincluding Podemos and prominent social figures.
Sumar is headed by the popular Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, who is also the second vice president and the only woman among the leaders of the four main parties.
This is the first time that the small parties of the left are united in a joint ticket in Spain. Their previous fragmentation was blamed for many of the municipal and regional losses in the May elections, and they hope that together they can make a bigger showing.
Sumar’s big goal is to beat Vox for the potential third position. This would allow Sumar to provide valuable support to another leftist coalition government. Polls consistently suggested during the campaign that an absolute majority for Partit Popular and Vox is very possible.
