The Spanish Socialist Party leader, Pedro Sanchez, confirmed that he accepted a mandate from the king to try and form a government, and would contact other parties starting next week to drum up support amid a deeply fragmented parliament.
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“Spaniards are fed up with anger and clashes, they want to believe in politics again,” Sanchez told the press but the process is still likely to take several weeks before anything happens really. “They want consensus and stability,” he emphasized.
On Monday, the current Prime Minister said he would start by reaching out across the political spectrum to Pablo Casado, the leader of the right-wing People’s Party as well as centre-right Ciudadanos. He would also call regional leaders, while a Socialist party official has been assigned to contact other parties to rally support.
The Iberian country has lived in a political rollercoaster since the 2015 general elections, which resulted in hung parliaments, forcing the winner to try to negotiate support from others to form a government.
España no tiene tiempo que perder. Necesitamos avances y transformaciones, grandes acuerdos de país. Nuestro propósito es que la orientación del Gobierno sea claramente progresista, reforzada por el acuerdo de coalición con Unidas Podemos, con un espíritu rotundamente dialogante. pic.twitter.com/BkNptzRMty
— Pedro Sánchez (@sanchezcastejon) 11 de diciembre de 2019
Rollercoaster Spain has no time to lose. We need advances and transformations, great country agreements. Our purpose is that the Government's orientation be clearly progressive, reinforced by the coalition agreement with United We can, with a resoundingly dialogic spirit.
The Socialists, led by Pedro Sanchez, have been scrambling to drum up support since winning the November 10th election but they have falled short of the majority. Just two days after, he announced a preliminary coalition deal with far-left Unidas Podemos. But together, still it’s not enough: the parties have 155 seats, short of the 176 seats needed for a majority in the 350-seat parliament.
The shortage of seats has left Sanchez and his party courting Catalan separatist party ERC, whose 13 seats offer the party a chance to play the role of potential kingmaker in the government.
Le he trasladado al Rey mi disposición de aceptar el encargo que me encomienda.
— Pedro Sánchez (@sanchezcastejon) 11 de diciembre de 2019
Los españoles fueron claros con su voto el 10N: quieren que gobierne el PSOE. No hay otra alternativa. Nuestra voluntad es gobernar desde valores progresistas, construyendo grandes consensos. pic.twitter.com/FkRoLIs5Jj
I have transferred to the King my willingness to accept the assignment entrusted to me. The Spaniards were clear with their vote on 10N: they want the PSOE to govern. There is no other alternative. Our will is to govern from progressive values, building great consensus.
King Felipe VI began formal consultations on Tuesday, meeting with the leaders of more than a dozen parties in his role as a facilitator. Sanchez on Wednesday did not offer any details on talks with ERC, instead calling on parties to take “responsibility” to end the political deadlock.
He was aiming for a timeline of “as soon as possible,” he said, but noted it did not depend on his party. “Voters were clear on November 10, they want the Socialists to govern. There is no other possible alternative,” he sentenced. “Spain needs to move forward, we all need to do our part.”