Pedro Sanchez calls a general election for July 23rd after a ‘swing to the right’

The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, announced yesterday (Monday) that there will be a general election on July 23^rd, much sooner than expected, not giving the PP or Vox time to celebrate their respective successes at the polls on Sunday, and “to let the people decide”.

In an institutional statement from the Moncloa Palace, he reported that he had met with King Felipe VI yesterday morning to officially notify him of the dissolution of Parliament to call an election, which is effectively admitting defeat on Sunday.

This happened just a few hours after the swing to the right in the municipal and regional elections on 28M, and the disappearance of Podemos from various regional parliaments. The elections have resulted in a new territorial scenario in which the PP has ousted the PSOE as the leading party in the country.

In its first test at national level, Alberto Núñez Feijóo's party obtained a great result, beating all expectations and winning even the best polls. The PP won the municipal elections in Spain with 31.5% of the votes, almost 9 points higher than in 2019, with the PSOE with 28.2%, only one point less than four years ago.

The strong growth of the PP is due to the virtual disappearance of Ciudadanos, and nearly all their supporters from four years ago switched to the PP. However, the scenario is complicated because, in many of the territories in which they won, they will need the support of Vox to be able to govern.