MNI POLITICAL RISK ANALYSIS-Spain Election Preview

Spain holds a snap general election on 23 July as Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez seeks to secure another term in office for his leftist coalition government. A poor set of results in May regional elections sparked Sanchez’s decision, one also brought about by cracks emerging between his centre-left Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) and the leftist Podemos, which propped up Sanchez’ minority government.

• The election will have wider ramifications outside Spain itself. This is not only because of the country’s position as the fourth largest eurozone economy, but also due to the fact that Spain holds the six-month rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union in H223. While the CoEU presidency does not hold any significant powers in terms of policy making, the chair is able to shape the direction of focus, often described as not being in the EU spotlight, but deciding on what issues the spotlight should shine.
• Please find MNI's full election preview attached with a summary of the Spanish electoral system and main political parties, an opinion polling chartpack, scenario analysis, and markets analysis.

Full preview: Spanish Election Preview