Socialists would win elections but PP Cs and Vox close to absolute majority, say surveys

Following the Spanish 2019 budget being voted down, Sánchez called snap elections for April 28

The socialist party sits in the Spanish congress on December 12 2018 (by Bernat Vilaró)
The socialist party sits in the Spanish congress on December 12 2018 (by Bernat Vilaró) / ACN

ACN | Barcelona

February 17, 2019 03:19 PM

The current ruling Spanish socialist PSOE party would win the upcoming snap elections—but with a potential absolute majority of the People’s Party (PP), Ciutadans (Cs), and Vox not far behind, according to surveys.

The forecasts, published on Sunday by newspapers ‘La Vanguardia’ and ‘El Periódico,’ also predicted that both the PP and the Unidos Podemos party would lose a significant amount of votes. Meanwhile, Catalan pro-independence ERC would gain seats, while PDeCAT would lose them.

‘La Vanguardia’ predicted that PSOE would get to 119 seats, PP 97, Cs 60, Podemos 32, Vox 16, ERC 11, and PDeCAT 6. Meanwhile, ‘El Periódico’ found that in the upcoming Spanish snap elections, PSOE would get between 115-117 seats, PP 75-77, Cs 44-47, Vox 43-46, Podemos 36-39, ERC 16-17, and PDeCAT 2-3.

Snap elections on April 28

President Pedro Sánchez called a snap election in Spain for April 28, after his government’s 2019 budget was rebuffed in a crucial parliamentary vote.

Sánchez’s announcement on Friday signals the end of his short-lived presidency, after the Socialist leader ousted the conservative Mariano Rajoy from power in a no-confidence vote last June.

The Catalan pro-independence ERC and PDeCAT parties, whose votes helped oust Rajoy and put the Socialists in power, rejected the spending plan in Congress on Wednesday, after Sánchez failed to meet their demands for concessions on self-determination or the independence leaders now on trial in Spain's Supreme Court.