Not even old Andalusian heartlands can save Pedro Sánchez

ملخص مفصل

Spain’s most populous region powered the Socialists for decades, but the politics of the south are changing.

SEVILLE, Spain — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez officially launched his long-shot reelection bid in Seville on Thursday, appealing to Socialist loyalists in Andalusia, the southern region that for decades served as his party’s political heartland.

But even here, the center-left is now is on the ropes — in a stark sign of how improbable a Sánchez win now looks on Nov. 29.

Surrounded by Socialist supporters waving red party banners and Andalusian flags and shouting “¡Guapo!” — “Handsome!” — the undaunted prime minister took the stage in Seville, dancing to the upbeat strains of a romantic pop song, chosen to underscore his progressive message of love in the face of the politics of hate.

“We’re here to vote, we’re here to win, we’re here to govern,” Sánchez told the adoring crowd, which had been shown videos of the prime minister reciting poems by Federico García Lorca, the celebrated Andalusian poet and playwright murdered by Francoist forces in 1936.

Sánchez’s decision to launch his campaign in Seville is laden with historic symbolism. For 36 years, the Socialists dominated Andalusian politics, controlling the regional government and many of the region’s biggest cities.

That hold on power ended in 2018, after years of declining support and a string of corruption scandals paved the way for the center-right People’s Party to take control.

Since becoming regional president in 2019, Juanma Moreno has established himself as a steady, pragmatic leader, winning a landslide victory in 2022 and securing the most votes in snap elections earlier this year. His success in Andalusia has also elevated his profile nationally, making him one of the leading figures of the PP’s moderate wing.

Despite the PP’s consolidation of power in Andalusia, the Socialists are not ready to relinquish their claim on the region. Francisco Toscano, a Socialist candidate for congress in Seville, told POLITICO the party still considered Andalusia to be its bastion.

“This is an eminently progressive…

مطلع المقال، مقتطف من Politico Europe. لقراءة المقال كاملًا، افتحه على موقع الناشر.