An alliance of conservative and ultra-right parties could win next Sunday’s parliamentary elections in Spain. Is Spain’s liberal abortion law up for grabs then? The country seems deeply divided
Almost every Saturday, Jesus Poveda parks the minibus on an inconspicuous street corner in Madrid. “Pregnancy Diagnosis” is written large on the minibus. The location was deliberately chosen – exactly opposite an abortion clinic.
Poveda’s mission: to change the minds of women who go in there, initially with information. Without pressure, emphasizes the doctor, who works here on a voluntary basis for his convictions and the “Ambulancia vida”. “The beauty of our ‘bailouts’ is that we give women who feel they can’t do anything but have an abortion an alternative, so that they actually have help.”
If the women don’t immediately say no to this kind of help, the bus continues with an ultrasound examination.
Clinic boss Sonia Lamas knows only too well the Saturday state of siege in front of her abortion clinic. She is annoyed by the methods used by those opposed to abortion. They prevented the women from exercising their rights, sometimes even the police had to intervene in front of the clinic door.
“They claim to be successful, even when they aren’t. But their main intention is to harass, intimidate and bully women. Everyone is welcome to have their own ideological point of view, but please not outside the doors of a recognized clinic standing under the pretense of helping women.”
What happens after the election?
Abortion rights are also part of the Spanish election campaign. For the ultra-right party Vox, it should be abolished. The left-wing alliance Sumar would like to expand the liberal abortion law in Spain so that public clinics also guarantee abortions.
In between are the big parties, the socialists PSOE, who rule with the left, and the conservative PP. Even the conservatives do not want to shake the fundamental right to an abortion, knowing full well that there is a broad consensus for this right among the Spanish population. But what will the PP do if, as is now the case in various regional governments, it cannot govern alone and forges a coalition with Vox?
A balancing act for the challenger
Political scientist Fernando Vallespín considers it quite likely that this alliance will form the future government after the election Sunday. However, Spain is a liberal democracy and the abortion law cannot simply be abolished.
“It could perhaps be changed in some small points, but it cannot be overturned because the Spanish Constitutional Court itself has already pointed out that it is a right,” said Vallespín.
But even if the constitution could put a stop to the most radical ideas of the ultra-right party – the crucial question in the Spanish election campaign remains: How does the conservative challenger Alberto Núñez Feijóo from PP feel about Vox? Feijóo mostly tries to avoid the topic somehow. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who is behind in the polls, puts his finger in this wound as often as possible.
Valencia as a role model?
In the Valencia region, the PP-Vox alliance prevailed in the regional elections at the end of May. At Bar Murta, in a left-leaning part of Valencia, the regional shift in political direction is weighing on the mood. Sebastiá Garcia, manager of three left-wing pubs, was already politically active at 14. As a white heterosexual entrepreneur, he doesn’t have to worry about himself, he says, but he does about his employees.
Garcia finds this frightening, as he sees it as a revival of 1970s fascism, with political ideas far removed from today. “For example, I have two trans employees. On May 28, after the regional elections, they told me that they were scared and thinking of leaving.”
For some here, Spain’s left-wing government could adopt even more left-wing policies. But the fact that the right is focusing all of its criticism of the governing coalition on Prime Minister Sánchez and mobilizing against the so-called “Sánchismo” goes against the grain for many.
Trampling the “sanchismo”.
The opposite picture emerges in the military district of Valencia. In front of the “Rincón Español” pub there is a doormat with Sánchez’ likeness in front of the door – anyone who comes in can first trample on “Sánchismo”. Barkeeper Yolanda Reza says her guests are all very right-wing, most voted for Vox.
Spain is economically ruined, the taxes are too high, there is too much communism, that’s how they see the government’s policy in Madrid. Bar patron Fernando Zárate thinks the good thing about Vox is that the party would drastically restrict immigration – “or abortion, for example, abortion is negative for me”.
Some here even openly doubt democracy. José Luis Roberto first points out that he would be imprisoned in Germany for what he is now saying. And then states: “The best system is a leader with honest people who makes clear announcements with few words and without spending a lot of money.”
A development like in the USA
Two pubs, two Spains, it seems. But even if these are the extreme poles – Spain seems to be very polarized in general in this election campaign. Political scientist Vallespín thinks what is happening in Spain is somewhat similar to the situation in the United States, where there are two worlds, the more traditional world of the right and a much more advanced world of the left.
Unlike in Germany, there is also no possibility of understanding between the two major parties PSOE and PP. In other words: a grand coalition is out of the question. It follows from this: “If the People’s Party wants to govern, it is only logical that it seeks an understanding with Vox. It cannot come to an understanding with the Socialist Party or with other left-wing parties, let alone with nationalist parties,” said Vallespín.
Experts believe that who wins the election will be decided in the last few meters, and some voters only make their decision on election day. The right-wing camp is further ahead in the polls. On Sunday, Spanish voters will decide whether Spain will stay fairly far to the left – or take a more or less right turn.