Spain’s Prime Minister-elect Pedro Sanchez vowed on Friday to addressed the "social emergencies" of the people after years of government austerity. Minutes after winning a no-confidence vote in parliament, the Socialist party leader pledged to root out the corruption that helped bring down Spains outgoing conservative government that was led by veteran Mariano Rajoy. Sanchez signaled a change in tone and priorities from Rajoys unbending commitment to reducing the national debt during his more than six years as prime minister. Sanchez, the 46-year-old head of what has been Spains main opposition party, has never held a government post. "Im aware of the responsibility and the complex political moment of our country," Sanchez said in brief comments to reporters after the 180-169 vote in the Congress of Deputies, Spains parliament. One lawmaker abstained. Sanchez will be sworn in Saturday at 0900 GMT by King Felipe VI at the Zarzuela Palace in Madrid and will appoint his Cabinet over the coming days. His triumph was a dramatic return to the spotlight after being fired as party leader less than two years ago. Sanchez said he intended to call elections before the end of this parliamentary term in 2020, but he didnt say when, and he probably will want to make his mark first with some headline policies before going to the polls. With just 84 deputies in the 350-seat parliament, the Socialists are also a "minority within its coalition" of parties that toppled Rajoy, top-selling newspaper El Pais observed. "Governing...with so little support will inevitably generate instability and contribute to deteriorating confidence in institutions," the center-left daily wrote Friday in an editorial. Several analysts predict Spain will face early elections within a year. Sanchez will only be able to implement policy initiatives "that allow him to obtain an easy majority" in parliament, such as a reform of an unpopular security law, said Fernando Vallespin, political scientist at the Autonomous University of Madrid. With the prospect of early elections high, there is a risk that a Sanchez government will be seen as running a permanent election campaign, said Vallespin. "What the Socialist party wants is to lead newscasts every day," he said. Sanchez will have to be careful not to "lose too much voice in the center" of the political spectrum. His success will "depend a great deal on his ability not to fell into the radicalism which Podemos will try to impose on him," Vallespin added. A Socialist-led government will be "marginally negative for economic policy", said Eurasia Group analyst Federico Santi.
مشاركة :