Podemos (Spanish political party)
This article needs to be updated.(October 2021) |
Podemos | ||
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Congress of Deputies 4 / 350 | ||
Senate | 0 / 265 [14] | |
European Parliament | 4 / 59 | |
Regional Parliaments | 16 / 1,248 | |
Regional Governments | 1 / 19 | |
Website | ||
podemos | ||
Podemos (Spanish:
Part of the
In the 2014 European Parliament election in Spain, Podemos won 8.0% of the vote, and five seats out of 54.[24][25] The result of newly founded party received significant media attention, having outperformed the polls.[26][27][28][29][30][31] By October 2014, Podemos claimed it was the second largest political party in Spain by number of members after the People's Party.[32]
In the 2015 Spanish general elections, Podemos won 69 seats, becoming the country's third largest political force; 300,000 votes behind the main Spanish left-wing party, the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party.
On 9 May 2016, Podemos formed the
History
This section needs to be updated.(October 2021) |
Background and foundation
Podemos emerged from the
In January 2014, it released the manifesto Mover ficha: convertir la indignación en cambio político ("Move A Piece: Turn Indignation Into Political Change"),[42] which was signed by thirty intellectuals and personalities, including Juan Carlos Monedero, Alberto San Juan, associate professor of political science at the National University of Distance Education (UNED) Jaime Pastor, the writer and philosopher Santiago Alba Rico, the former leader of the Left Trade Union Current Cándido González Carnero and Bibiana Medialdea, associate professor of applied economy at the UCM.[43]
Podemos' manifesto stated that it was necessary to create a party list for the
The Podemos movement was officially launched on 16 January 2014 in the Teatro del Barrio in the Lavapiés neighbourhood of Madrid, with a press conference attended by hundreds of people. The speakers at the launch included Pablo Iglesias, Juan Carlos Monedero, Teresa Rodríguez,[48] psychiatrist and member of the Marea Blanca Ana Castaño, Íñigo Errejón and Miguel Urbán. The party's fundamental goal was to oppose the austerity policies of the government.[49]
In order to run in the European elections of 2014, the members of the bare bones of Podemos set themselves three conditions: to receive the support of at least 50,000 people; that both the programme and the lists of candidates be prepared through open participation; and that unity be sought with other parties and movements of the left, and the Podemos website crashed due to the high traffic.
In August 2015, Podemos endorsed
2014 European Parliament election
In the 2014 European Parliament election in Spain on 25 May,[52] Podemos received 7.98% of the national vote, with 1,200,000 votes cast, electing five Members of the European Parliament (MEPs).[53] Iglesias chose Dina Bousselham to lead his cabinet of advisors as an MEP.[54]
El País described Pablo Iglesias Turrión as pessimistic about the outcome of the election: "We have lost these European elections. They have been won by the People's Party. We cannot be happy about this". He stated that his objective is to "move forward until we throw the PP and the PSOE out of power"[55] and that "[w]e will now work with other parties from the south of Europe to make it clear that we don't want to be a German colony".[55] Iglesias said Podemos MEPs would not take the standard MEP salary of more than €8,000 a month, stating that "not one of our MEPs will earn more than €1,930, an amount that's three times the minimum wage in Spain".[56]
First party congress
On 5 June 2014, Pablo Iglesias Turrión announced that the Asamblea Ciudadana "Sí se puede" (Citizens' Assembly "Yes, It Can Be Done") would take place in the autumn. Iglesias also announced that a team of twenty-five people would be responsible for preparing the assembly, to be chosen in open elections in which anybody could participate, with closed lists, with no limit to the number of lists which could be presented. The vote took place over the Internet on 12 and 13 June.[57] Two lists were presented, one headed by Iglesias[58] and the other promoted by the Círculo de Enfermería ("Nurses' circle").[59] The technical details of the election and the deadlines generated discussion within Podemos. In a meeting of Podemos circles which took place on 8 June in Madrid, there was criticism for both the closed lists and the short deadlines, which allegedly led to fewer lists being presented.[60] The electoral process in which 55,000 people participated gave the victory to Iglesias' list, with 86.8% of the vote.[61]
A major part of the citizens' assembly involved the writing of documents defining the political and organisational principles of the party as well as resolutions the party would adopt. Any member of Podemos could present a document and these would be adopted or rejected in a vote with all members of Podemos participating. These documents would determine the structure of the party. Internal elections would then take place, again with the participation of all members of Podemos, to fill the positions defined by this structure.[62]
The citizens' assembly held a meeting in Madrid on 18 and 19 October. On 19 October, Podemos membership was 130,000[63] and on 22 October it was 170,000.[64]
The citizens' assembly adopted five resolutions, all of which were submitted by circles, based on the votes of Podemos members, each of whom could vote for five resolutions. The approved resolutions were on improving public education (45%), on anti-corruption measures (42%), on the right to housing (38%), on improving public healthcare (31%) and on auditing and re-structuring the debt (23%).[65]
The ethical, political and structure documents proposed by the "Claro que Podemos", which included Luis Alegre, Carolina Bescansa, Íñigo Errejón, Pablo Iglesias and Juan Carlos Monedero were approved by 80.7% of the vote, surpassing "Sumando Podemos" 12.3% of the vote, promoted by the MEPs Pablo Echenique, Teresa Rodríguez and Lola Sánchez in the vote for the structure document.[66][67]
2015 local elections
In October 2014, Podemos decided not to stand candidates in the 2015 Spanish local elections.[68] Instead, it decided that its members would support local grassroots candidacies, most notably Barcelona en Comú, the citizen platform led by anti-evictions activist Ada Colau in Barcelona and Ahora Madrid (led by ex judge Manuela Carmena) in Madrid.[citation needed]
2015 general election
In the lead up to the 2015 general election, Podemos adopted a pledge that, if the party won the election, it would hold a nationwide referendum on whether Spain should retain the Spanish monarchy or become a republic.[69] The party also promised to increase public spending and ban job cuts in profitable firms.[69]
At the 2015 general election on 20 December 2015, Podemos received 21% of the vote and became the third largest party in the parliament, with 69 out of 350 seats.[70][71]
Unidos Podemos
Following the failure of the
Andalucía
Podemos formed the Adelante Andalucía coalition with the left, the Greens and Primavera Andaluza to contest the 2018 Andalusian regional election.[74][75][76][77]
Sumar
In April 2023, Podemos declined to join left-wing alliance with new party Sumar because of differences over how candidates are selected.[78] It was intended that these differences be resolved and negotiated on before Podemos would join the new alliance of left-wing parties for the upcoming general election scheduled for December 2023. Poor results for the ruling PSOE, Podemos and other left-wing parties in the Spanish local and regional elections held on 28 May 2023 led to Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez calling for a snap general election, five months earlier than originally planned.[79] This resulted in a speeding up of the negotiation process with Sumar. On 9 June, Podemos came to an agreement to run together with Sumar at the upcoming general elections just hours before the deadline for the registration of coalitions with electoral authority.[80] Podemos immediately came into conflict with Sumar and its leader Yolanda Díaz over the inclusion of Podemos candidates on the electoral lists. The main point of conflict was the supposed veto of Díaz over the prominent Podemos politician and Minister for Equality, Irene Montero, wife of Podemos founder and former leader, Pablo Iglesias.[81] Montero was not to be included on the Sumar list for the Madrid constituency. This move was widely condemned by the leadership and supporters of Podemos, with former leader Iglesias calling it "a political mistake"' and asking Díaz to rectify it; he stated that he found it hard in the situation to separate "the personal from the political".[82] In addition, Podemos spokesperson in the Congress, Pablo Echenique, was also excluded from the lists.[83] Ione Belara, the General Secretary of Podemos, was placed fifth on the list for Madrid.[84] In the election, Podemos won five seats in the Congress of Deputies, out of 31 for Sumar in total.
On 5 December 2023, Podemos announced that they had broken with Sumar, and its five MPs moved from the Sumar group to the mixed group in Congress.[85]
Ideology and platform
This section needs to be updated.(October 2021) |
A party on the
Podemos presented a collaboratively written programme for the
Domestic politics
Podemos is opposed to the current
The party and its former leader (
Podemos supported the exhumation of Francisco Franco.[102]
Social issues
Podemos has been described as a progressive party.[103][104][105][106][107] The party considers itself egalitarian,[108] secularist,[109] anti-racist,[110] anti-fascist[111] and environmentalist.[110]
The party is strongly
Podemos supports
Podemos supports the
Podemos supports legalising and regulating cannabis in Spain.[123][124][125] The party also supported the legalisation of euthanasia.[126]
Economy
Podemos opposes
The party supports a universal basic income (UBI) for everyone over 18 years of age in Spain. In January 2023, the party proposed the amount be between €700 and €1,400 a month.[130]
Environment
The party is opposed to climate change and wants to create laws against "energetic poverty".[110]
Foreign policy
Podemos considers itself a
Podemos is a member of The Left in the European Parliament, where the Greek party Syriza is also found, and whose leader, Alexis Tsipras, has been supportive of Podemos.[141][142]
The party supports the
Podemos supports the right of
The party was said to also have alleged ties to the
Reception
The support obtained by the new formation after the European elections in 2014 resulted in multiple analyses and reactions. While some sectors welcomed the results, there were also expressions of concern.
The leader of
The leaders of Podemos also tried to distance themselves from the government of Venezuela following allegations of "murky" funding since many Podemos leaders were linked to Venezuela and other "revolutionary" governments in Latin America.[157][158] Consulting work by several party members, including Iglesias, in leftist Latin American governments earned their consulting organisation, Center for Political and Social Studies Foundation (CEPS Foundation), €3.5 million, which helped fund their television debates.[157][158] Juan Carlos Monedero, one of Podemos' founding members, received €425,000 for political consultancy work for Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia and Nicaragua.[157] Podemos called for an external auditor to observe accounts from February 2014 to December 2014, which showed that the total income from both private donations and state subsidies was at about €947,000. Among the largest donors to the party were Podemos' own five MEPs, who donated €52,000 in 2014 from their salaries.[157]
Since March 2015, journalists have been critical of the relationship between the political party and the traditional media.[159] In March 2017, around a dozen Spanish journalists filed a complaint with the Madrid Press Association (APM), accusing Podemos of intimidating them because they published articles that were critical of the party.[160] The Economist magazine has described the party as far-left.[161]
Popular support
This section needs to be updated.(October 2021) |
According to GlobalPost, Podemos and other parties of the left have suddenly grown because of Europe's economic difficulties.[162] Unemployment, especially among young Spanish adults, has created a positive sentiment towards Podemos and their appeal to the unsatisfied youth of Spain with an "irreverent style".[162] Podemos also used its very well run social media presence to its benefit to find popularity.[162]
After it received the fourth highest number of votes in the European elections, news related to the growth of Podemos started to be published. The
According to Politico Europe's Poll of Polls, Podemos has remained the fourth most popular party in Spain, since the November 2019 Spanish general election.[173] Podemos has polled, on average, at 11% by National Parliament voting intention.
Electoral performance
Cortes Generales
Cortes Generales | |||||||||
Election | Congress | Senate | Leading candidate | Status in legislature | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Votes | % | No. | Seats | +/– | Seats | +/– | |||
2015 | With EC–EEM–EM | 49 / 350
|
49 | 12 / 208
|
12 | Pablo Iglesias Turrión | Snap election | ||
2016 | Within Unidos Podemos
|
47 / 350
|
2 | 11 / 208
|
1 | Opposition | |||
Confidence and supply[174] (from June 2018) | |||||||||
2019 (April) |
Within Unidas Podemos | 32 / 350
|
15 | 0 / 208
|
11 | Snap election | |||
2019 (November) |
Within Unidas Podemos | 26 / 350
|
7 | 0 / 208
|
0 | Coalition (PSOE–UP) | |||
2023 | Within Sumar | 5 / 350
|
21 | 0 / 208
|
0 | Yolanda Díaz | Confidence and supply |
European Parliament
European Parliament | |||||
Election | Vote | % | Score | Seats | +/– |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2014 | 1,253,837 | 8.0% | 4th | 5 / 54
|
5 |
2019 | Within Unidas Podemos Cambiar Europa | 3 / 54
|
2 |
Notes
- Totals for Podemos in 2019 do not include elected seats from United Left (2) and Catalunya en Comú (1).
Regional parliaments
Region | Election | Votes | % | No. | Seats | Status in legislature |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Andalusia | 2022 | Within PA | 3 / 109
|
Opposition | ||
Aragon | 2023 | 26,923 | 4.0% | 6th | 1 / 67
|
Opposition |
Asturias | 2023 | 21,052 | 3.0% | 5th | 1 / 45
|
Confidence and supply |
Balearic Islands | 2023 | Within UP | 1 / 59
|
Opposition | ||
Basque Country | 2020 | Within EP | 4 / 75
|
Opposition | ||
Canary Islands | 2023 | Within USP | 0 / 61
|
No seats | ||
Cantabria | 2023 | Within UP | 0 / 35
|
No seats | ||
Castile and León | 2022 | Within UP | 1 / 81
|
Opposition | ||
Castilla–La Mancha | 2023 | Within UP | 0 / 33
|
No seats | ||
Catalonia | 2021 | Within ECP | 1 / 135
|
Opposition | ||
Extremadura | 2023 | Within UpE | 2 / 65
|
Opposition | ||
Galicia | 2024 | 3,854 | 0.26% | 8th | 0 / 75
|
No seats |
La Rioja
|
2023 | Within UP | 0 / 33
|
Opposition | ||
Madrid | 2023 | Within UP | 0 / 136
|
No seats | ||
Murcia | 2023 | Within UP | 1 / 45
|
Opposition | ||
Navarre | 2023 | Within CN | 2 / 50
|
Coalition | ||
Valencian Community | 2023 | Within UP | 0 / 99
|
No seats |
Organization
Membership history
This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: This was before they started charging a membership fee to be a member in 2020. Current numbers are significantly lower.(June 2021) |
As of 2019, there are 523,000 members and 25,000 activists.[175]
Date | Membership (approx.) |
---|---|
28 July 2014 | 0[176] |
17 August 2014 | 100,000[176] |
27 October 2014 | 200,000[171] |
29 December 2014 | 300,000[177] |
16 April 2016 | 400,000[177] |
23 May 2018 | 500,000[177] |
Regional branches
The party has regional branches for every single
- Podemos Andalusia
- Podemos Asturias
- Podemos Castile and León
- Podemos Extremadura
- Podemos Region of Murcia
Alliances and regional sections of the party
Nationwide
- Unidas Podemos
- Sumar (2023)
Andalusia
- Adelante Andalucía
- Por Andalucía (since 2022)
Asturias
Balearic Islands
Basque Country
Catalonia
Galicia
- En Marea (until 2019)[178]
- Galicia en Común
Valencian Community
- És el moment (merged into A la valenciana in 2016)[179]
- A la valenciana
European Union
- Unidas Podemos Cambiar Europa
Notes
- ^ since 2022
- ^ until 2022
- ^ In other languages of Spain, the name of Podemos is as follows:
- Basque: Ahal Dugu, IPA: [(a.)al du.ɣu]
- Catalan: Podem, IPA: [puˈðɛm, poˈðɛm]
- Galician: Podemos, IPA: [poˈðɛmʊs]
References
- ^ "Instituto República y Democracia: Podemos cambia el nombre de su fundación con Pablo Iglesias al frente". elDiario.es (in Spanish). 15 October 2021. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
- )
- ^ ISBN 978-1-317-22221-7.
- ISBN 978-1-317-75164-9.
- ^ a b "Pablo Iglesias: "No somos republicanos para cambiar una bandera, sino porque somos demócratas y patriotas"". ElDiario.es. 14 April 2017.
- ^ a b c "Podemos esgrimirá un "símbolo republicano" ante el Rey en los actos de la Constitución". El Plural. 5 December 2018.
- ^ Santaeulalia, Inés (19 September 2020). "Iglesias: "Podemos tiene que trabajar y construir alianzas para avanzar hacia un horizonte republicano"". EL PAÍS.Manetto, Francesco (24 June 2015). "¿Qué es ser patriota para Podemos?". El País – via elpais.com.
- ^ a b c Villarejo, Carlos Jiménez; Jané, Francesc Trillas (11 August 2015). "Tribuna | El federalismo de Podemos". El País – via elpais.com.
- ^ "Podemos pide en Europa dejar de armar a Ucrania e investigar sus crímenes de guerra". Borja Negrete. Voz Pópuli.
- ^ a b c d e Nordsieck, Wolfram (2016). "Spain". Parties and Elections in Europe. Archived from the original on 23 October 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
- ISBN 9783030702427.. EURACTIV. 10 November 2019. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
- Schweid, Richard (27 March 2021). "An Ex-King, Missing Millions and a Monarchy in Crisis". Politico. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
The Socialist government's coalition partner, the left-wing Podemos (We Can) party, joined the separatists in condemning the ex-king's departure.
- Somerville, Hannah (2 April 2021). "Spain's left-wing Podemos party blames far-right for attack on Murcia headquarters". The Conversation. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
- "Podemos gains as Spain launches new election campaign". BBC News. 10 June 2016. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
- Bevins, Vincent (7 October 2019). "Where Progressives Are Winning". The Atlantic. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
- "Leaders of Spain's Podemos win confidence vote after house purchase queried". Reuters. 27 May 2018. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
- Sims, Alexandra (13 January 2016). "Pablo Iglesias: Leader of Spain's left-wing Podemos party comforts colleague's baby in Congress". The Independent. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
- Zabala, Santiago (26 April 2019). "Spain is in danger of falling into the hands of the far right". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
- "Tactical voting or conviction, what will drive the Spanish elections?"
- Schweid, Richard (27 March 2021). "An Ex-King, Missing Millions and a Monarchy in Crisis". Politico. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
- "Last of the commies". The Economist. 18 November 2021. Archived from the original on 11 July 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
Podemos, a far-left Spanish party, is part of the governing coalition, but its brand of anti-austerity populism comes from a different tradition to Europe's remaining reds.
- Hedgecoe, Guy (26 October 2021). "Sánchez faces tough battle to end Spain's €3.7B sex industry". Politico EU. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
Unidas Podemos (UP), the hard-left junior partner in the Socialist-led government, is divided between abolitionists and those seeking to better regulate prostitution.
- "Pablo Iglesias Elected to Head Spain's Leftist Podemos Party". Agence France-Presse. 15 November 2014. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
... Podemos, a fast-growing Spanish far-left party set up in January ...
- "Anti-EU parties celebrate election success". Financial Times. 26 May 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
- "La izquierda extrema y Vox". ELMUNDO (in Spanish). 26 November 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
... Podemos, a fast-growing Spanish far-left party set up in January ...
Both—especially Podemos—make a point of feeling inspired by what is commonly referred to as the "pink tide" in Latin America: the success of populist leaders such as Rafael Correa, Evo Morales, and, above all, Hugo Chávez.
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Because the attempt to forge an alliance with anti-austerity party Podemos has failed, acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will have to explore 'other possibilities,' the Socialist Party President Cristina Narbona told reporters in Madrid Saturday.
Unidas Podemos (UP), the hard-left junior partner in the Socialist-led government, is divided between abolitionists and those seeking to better regulate prostitution.
While Díaz was speaking in Barcelona, Ione Belarra, the general secretary of Podemos, was in Madrid presenting the party's plan to offer a universal basic income of between €700 and €1,400 (£620-$1,240) a month to everyone over 18 years of age.
Podemos, a far-left Spanish party, is part of the governing coalition, but its brand of anti-austerity populism comes from a different tradition to Europe's remaining reds.
Bibliography
- Fernández-Albertos, José (2015) Los Votantes de Podemos: Del partido de los indignados al partido de los excluidos. Madrid: Libros de la Catarata.
- Ramiro, Luis; Gómez, Raúl (2016) Radical-left populism during the great recession: Podemos and its competition with the established radical left. Political Studies. org/10.1177/0032321716647400. doi:10.1177/0032321716647400.[permanent dead link]
- Rodríguez Teruel, Juan; Barrio, Astrid; Barberà, Oscar (2016) "Fast and Furious: Podemos' quest for power in multi-level Spain". South European Politics and Society. Taylor and Francis. doi: 10.1080/13608746.2016.1250397. Published online.