Pedro Sanchez Named Caretaker Prime Minister as Political Deadlock Deepens in Spain
There is immense political uncertainty in Spain following the inconclusive elections, with Pedro Sanchez appointed as caretaker prime minister and the possibility of another election looming.
In a move to address the political uncertainty in Spain after Sunday's inconclusive elections, Pedro Sanchez has been officially named as the country's caretaker prime minister. This interim government will remain in power until a resolution is reached.
Despite the victory of Alberto Nunez Feijoo's right-wing Popular Party, they were unable to secure a governing majority, giving Sanchez's Socialists an opportunity to form alliances with smaller parties.
King Felipe VI issued a statement in the official State Gazette declaring the dismissal of Pedro Sanchez as head of government, stating that he will remain in office until a new prime minister is appointed.
If the political deadlock continues in the coming months, Spain may have to hold another election to determine a clear majority government. Feijoo's Popular Party won 136 out of the 350 seats in parliament, falling short of the 176 required for a majority.
Even with the support of Vox's 33 mandates, their coalition would only reach a total of 169 seats. Feijoo intends to form a minority government as the winner of the vote and has started discussions with regionalist parties, but these talks are expected to fail due to Vox's extremist positions and strong opposition to regional autonomy.
On the other hand, although the left-wing bloc won fewer seats, Sanchez's Socialists secured 122 seats and their ally Sumar won 31, bringing their total to 153. They have the potential to gain support from the left-wing Catalan separatist party ERC and the Basque separatists Bildu.
The main challenge for Sanchez would be to secure the abstention of the hardline Catalan separatist party JxCat in a parliamentary investiture vote. Sumar has expressed its willingness to engage in talks with JxCat, which holds seven seats and has become a crucial player in Sunday's election.
If successful, Sanchez could gather the support of 172 lawmakers, enough to pass a second investiture vote where only a simple majority is required, as long as JxCat does not vote against him. However, both rival blocs are still awaiting the counting of votes from abroad, which is scheduled to begin on Friday and could take several days to complete.
The outcome of these counted votes may have a significant impact on the formation of a government and the resolution of the political uncertainty in Spain.