A STRANGE PLOT TWIST IN SPANISH POLITICS

The political instability that Spain has been experiencing for several months took an unexpected turn in recent days, raising fears of a future of heightened partisan confrontation and polarization in civil society.

On Wednesday the 24th, the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, denounced persecution against his wife and himself by right-wing judges and media. Sánchez accused the main opposition party, the Popular Party, of inciting and being part of this alleged conspiracy and cancelled all his activities for five days to decide whether he wanted to continue as Prime Minister. "I need to reflect on whether it is worth continuing in these circumstances," were his own words.

A few days earlier, a judge in Madrid had opened a preliminary investigation into Pedro Sánchez's wife, Bego?a Gómez, concerning a complaint for alleged influence peddling. Several Spanish media outlets had been publishing news about Bego?a Gómez's activities with businessmen and academic institutions for days.

Sánchez interpreted this judicial investigation as an intolerable attack against his wife and his government based on fake news and backed by right-wing judges. Sánchez has long been at odds with the judiciary due to opposition from various judicial bodies to the amnesty law for former Catalan President Carles Puigdemont and other pro-independence leaders. Puigdemont was decisive in helping Sánchez secure the necessary votes in Parliament to be sworn in as Prime Minister.

On Monday the 29th, after five days of reflection away from public activity, Sánchez announced that he would remain in office. The news brought joy to his followers but confusion to everyone else. There is no similar case in the history of Spanish democracy. After the threat of resignation and the long wait, which caused unprecedented uncertainty in Spanish society, it was expected that Sánchez would announce, at the very least, some significant changes in the governance of the country.

Sánchez's political rivals suspect that this strange manoeuvre may be the prelude to punitive measures against judges and media hostile to the government. Sánchez's allies in the coalition government, a coalition of far-left parties known as Sumar, have denounced a campaign to overthrow the government and demand decisive action against the right. Catalan and Basque independence partners claim that Sánchez has experienced firsthand that the Spanish judicial system is responsible for lawfare.

It is too early to anticipate how all this will end. On May 12, important regional elections are held in Catalonia, and in June, Spaniards will participate in elections for the European Parliament. It cannot be ruled out that, depending on the results of these two elections, Spaniards will be called to the polls again for general elections next autumn, even though it has not yet been a year since the last parliamentary election, held on July 23, 2023.

The problems arising from those last elections - a minority government supported by a motley coalition of radicals and separatists - continue to plague Spanish politics, with no alternative government on the right at the moment.

Fortunately, the Spanish economy is progressing correctly, seemingly unaffected by political obstacles. But it is logical to think that a prolongation of the current instability will eventually affect the well-being and progress of Spaniards in one way or another.