The Socialists took just 28 out of 109 available seats, while the main conservative popular party won 53, two short of a majority. The far-right Vox party took 15 seats, making it a potential kingmaker.
The party of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has suffered a historic loss in regional elections that took place in Andalusia on Sunday, which are widely considered a preview of what may be in store for national elections next year.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Sanchez's Socialists (PSOE) took just 28 out of an available 109 seats, while the main conservative Popular Party (PP) won 53, two short of a majority. The far-right Vox party took 15 seats.
The result makes Vox a potential kingmaker. The PP has previously formed coalition governments with Vox in Extremadura, Aragon and Castile and Leon. It has not ruled out collaboration at the national level if the next general election, expected to be held next year, also does not give it a majority.
The election in Spain's most populous region of 9 million is considered a political barometer ahead of the general election scheduled for 2027, in a context marked by fatigue with the national government and several corruption investigations involving the president's inner circle and former aides.
Regions hold broad powers in key areas such as healthcare, education and housing, making this election a decisive test within Spain's decentralised system. A traditional socialist stronghold for almost four decades, the region has been governed since 2019 by the Popular Party.
A total of 163,510 Andalusians voted in advance, according to official data. The PP went into the race as favourite to retain power in the region. That scenario would open the door for Vox to once again play a decisive role, as has already happened in other regions such as Extremadura, Aragón and Castilla y León.
A significant defeat
For the socialists, a defeat in Andalusia is particularly significant. The PSOE candidate is María Jesús Montero, a former deputy prime minister and finance minister, whom the PP has placed at the centre of its attacks, linking her both to the management of the central government and to the corruption cases engulfing the party.
The socialist candidate cast her vote in Seville**.** Speaking to the media on Sunday morning, she said: "This is an extremely important day for us to be able to decide our future. Nobody should stay at home."
During the campaign, the PP leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, has urged voters to back his party on the grounds that a victory in Andalusia would have a double effect: consolidating political change in the region and strengthening the alternative to Sánchez's government.
The PP has not ruled out deals with Vox, as it has already done in other regions, placing it in a different position from other European conservative parties that keep their distance from the far right.
For his part, Sánchez has in recent days called for the mobilisation of progressive voters to prevent Vox from entering the Andalusian government, presenting Montero's candidacy as a solid option for the region.
Other candidates have also already exercised their right to vote. José Ignacio García, of Adelante Andalucía, went to a polling station in Jerez de la Frontera accompanied by his mother. "Today we are all equal, we all have the same power and we have to make the most of it," he said after casting his ballot.