News / EU

Spain’s far-right to double seats in upcoming vote: Poll

Sunday, 03 November 2019 2:24 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 03 November 2019 2:29 PM ]

Spanish far-right Vox supporters wave flags during a campaign rally in Santander, on November 1, 2019, ahead of the November 10 general elections. (Photo by AFP)

Spain’s far-right Vox Party is set to double the number of its parliamentary seats in the country’s general elections, which are due next week, a new poll suggests.

According to an opinion poll published in the daily El Pais on Sunday, while the center-left Socialist Party of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez looks set to see the number of its seats slip to 121 from 123 in the 350-seat Congress of Deputies, the far-right Vox would see its seats jump from 24 to 46.

Spain is scheduled to hold its fourth general elections on November 10, after the country failed to reach a deal on a coalition government. Spain’s last elections were held in April.

The Socialists won April’s vote but failed to win enough seats to govern without the support of other parties.

On September 3, Sanchez said there were too many disagreements with far-left Unidas Podemos to form a coalition government but offered an option that would see the parties agree on policies and give non-cabinet positions to Podemos.

However, Podemos’ leader Pablo Iglesias said that a coalition government was the only option.

Then, in a hard-hitting speech, Sanchez insisted a coalition government would not work and has talked about the mistrust between the two parties.

In his speech, Sanchez said that he was still aiming to seek a deal and there was no objective reason to hold repeat elections, as he presented over 300 policy proposals in a last-ditch effort to secure allies to form a government.

PressTV-Spain's far-right Vox party says it's here to stay

Spain’s far-right Vox party has become the first far-right party to gain representation in Spanish politics since the death of General Franco.

The Sunday poll suggests that even with the support of other leftist parties, the Socialist Party would fall short of the 176 seats needed for an overall majority.

Podemos would likely secure 31 seats, down from 42 in the April elections, the poll showed.

By contrast, the conservative Popular Party (PP) looks set to see its number of seats rise to 91 from 66 in the last elections.

And the business-friendly liberal party Ciudadanos will be the biggest loser, with just 14 seats, compared with 57 six months ago.

Some 2,000 voters were questioned between October 23 and 29 for the survey in El Pais.

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