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New political landscape in Spain Printer friendly page Print This
By Staff Writers, teleSUR
teleSUR
Monday, May 25, 2015

Ada Colau, leader and local candidate of "Barcelona en Comu" party, reacts as she celebrates her victory after the regional and municipal elections in Barcelona,Spain, May 24, 2015. | Photo: Barcelona

In Barcelona, Ada Colau Ballano, backed by the left-wing Podemos party, won the mayoral election.

Sunday's regional elections in Spain have seen losses for the country’s traditional parties and  significant gains for new parties, including the leftist Podemos and center-right Ciudadanos.

The results underline growing disenchantment towards the two main parties, the Conservative People's Party (PP), which lost its majorities in a number of cities, as well as the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE). Both have dominated politics in Spain since the end of dictatorship 40 years ago.

Spain's ruling People's Party is on course to get its worst result in nationwide municipal elections since 1991, official data showed after 80 percent of the votes had been counted.

Although the PP remains the party with most votes nationally on 26%, that is down around 10 percentage points on previous elections in 2011.

The PP and the rival Socialists looked likely to fall short of overall majorities in most areas, meaning coalitions with minority parties will be needed in the 13 of Spain's 17 regions that voted on Sunday.  

“It's a drubbing for the PP. The fear factor did not come into play and people voted for Podemos and Ciudadanos," pollster Jose Pablo Ferrandiz told Reuters.

Left wins in Barcelona
In Barcelona, the Podemos backed candidate Ada Colau Ballano came first in the mayoral election with 25% of the vote. She called the win in Barcelona a new "victory of David against Goliath".

"The common people, the ordinary citizens, who usually have not had political power, economic, judicial, media power... we had a historic opportunity and we have taken (it)" added Colau.

In Madrid, the PP ruling party won 21 of the 57 seats in the city council just ahead of ​Podemos-backed coalition Ahora Madrid ("Madrid Now") on 20 seats. The Socialists came third with 9 seats and will determine who governs in the capital.

The PP has run Madrid since since 1991.

Podemos makes gains
"This is a magic night. It is a historical night in Spain which points directly to change," Pablo Iglesias, the leader of Podemos party told a cheering crowds late Sunday.

"The story of the end of bipartisan politics in Spain begins to be written today. Parties in power have had one of the worst results in their history...every time polls open in this country, the number of our supporters only grows. We think this spring of change is irreversible,” the leader of the one-year old party stated, adding that his party is ready for the “challenge to win the general election," he added.

End of two party politics
Speaking with teleSUR, Jacobo Garcia, Activist for Podemos and Political Advisor to the Alianza Pais party in Ecuador, said the presence of new parties like Podemos and the centre-right Ciudadanos represents a major break with the country's two-party system which has been in place since the end of Franco dictatorship in the 1970s. The conservative PP and social democratic PSOE have suffered due to high-profile corruption allegations, economic stagnation and record-high unemployment of almost 25 percent over the last two administrations.

The left-leaning Podemos party has quickly gained support, as the country's economy crisis has become a major concern for its citizens and politicians across the political spectrum since the global economic and social crisis broke out in 2008. Podemos has put a strong focus on social security, improved access to education and public health care.


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