The centre-left PSOE emerged greatly strengthened, and it looks almost certain that their leader Pedro Sánchez will continue as prime minister. But he will need the support of Podemos, “We can”, the populist leftwing party led by Pablo Iglesias, and other parties, probably including the Basque nationalist party, the PNV. A potential coalition of the traditional rightwing PP, (Partido Popular - People’s party) and rightwing challengers Citizens (Ciudadanos), possibly including the far-right Vox party now looks unlikely.
The traditional centre-right party, PP, had a terrible night after a parliamentary term that saw them engulfed in corruption scandals. They lost nearly half their parliamentary base and were all but wiped out in Catalonia and the Basque country. (See the key below for a full list of parties and abbreviations.)
Having won their first national parliamentary seat four years ago, Citizens are now challenging the PP for the title of leading rightwing party. On the left, in contrast, populists Podemos saw their voteshare decline as voters returned to the traditional leftwing party, PSOE.
Key
All parties with seats: PSOE - Partido Socialista y Obrero de España, Spanish Socialist and Workers Party, the traditional party of the left. PP - Partido Popular, People’s party, the traditional party of the right. Podemos - ‘We can’, a populist left party. Citizens - (Ciudadanos, Ciutadans, C’s), a newish rightwing party. EAJ - PNV - Euzko Alderdi Jeltzal, Partido Nacionalista Vasco, both meaning Basque Nationalist Party, a relatively moderate Basque party. ERC - Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, Republican Left of Catalonia, a leftwing pro-independence party. Junts/JuntsX - Junts per Catalunya, Together for Catalonia, an alliance of strongly pro-independence groups associated with the exiled Carles Puigdemont. EH Bildu - Euskal Herria Bildu, Basque Country Unite, a leftwing Basque party. PRC - Partido Regionalista de Cantabria, Cantabrian Regionalist Party, from a hilly northern province. CCa-PNC - Coalición Canaria, Partido Nacionalista Canario - Canary Islands Nationalist party. NA+ - Navarra Más, Navarra Plus, a rightwing electoral pact between the PP and Citizens together with a local party in the partly-Basque speaking region in the north. Vox - a new far-right party. Compromís 2019 - Commitment 2019, a Valencian leftwing party formerly part of the Podemos coalition.
