CIS verdict on the blackout: 60% of Spaniards believe official information was insufficient

Barcelona59.6% of Spaniards believe the information provided by the Spanish government during Monday's power outage was "insufficient." This is the data from the flash survey published this Saturday by the Center for Sociological Research (CIS) regarding the electricity crisis that left the entire Iberian Peninsula without power. Only 28.4% believe the information provided through official channels on Monday, when Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez appeared twice, was sufficient.

In the absence of knowing the causesThe study reveals that 26% of respondents believe the blackout was caused by deliberate action, such as a cyberattack, while 46.2% maintain it was the result of a technical failure. The Spanish government has already launched two official working groups to investigate what caused it, which met this morning: one on the electrical system and the other on cybersecurity, as agreed by the official outage analysis committee. In fact, the Minister for Ecological Transition, Sara Aagesen, chaired the second meeting of the committee this morning, which is already analyzing the black boxes while awaiting receipt of the "totality" of the data requested from the companies. The group on the electrical system is coordinated by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and has been joined by members of the CNMC (National Commission for the Commission of Electricity), while the cybersecurity group is led by the Ministry for Digital Transformation. Also present at the committee meeting was the president of Red Eléctrica, Beatriz Corredor, who did rule out a cyberattack.

78% were not afraid

The CIS also offers more data on how citizens experienced the massive power outage: 78% maintain they were not afraid, although more women (29.1%) than men (13.5%) were. By age, those most afraid were those between 25 and 34 years old, followed by young people between 18 and 24 years old. Regarding what to do to prevent a crisis like this, the majority position is that "the electrical grid must be modernized." This is supported by 44.2% of respondents. 49.3% indicate that a ministry should be created to manage emergency situations like this, which are unprecedented, and more than half considered he kit of emergencies recommended by the European Union when they found themselves isolated and disconnected.

The survey also offers data on voting preferences after the blackout: 19% say they would vote for the PSOE, four points behind the PP, which remains at 15%. 8.7% would vote for Vox, followed by Sumar (3.1%) and Podemos (1.8%). These percentages refer to respondents who spontaneously mention a party when asked who they would vote for in the next elections. This study does not include voting estimates.

Radio Day

The survey also confirms that the radio was the information medium that most accompanied those surveyed during the blackout. Ninety percent of citizens rate the information they received through this medium "very positively." Those who had a battery-powered radio at home used it, almost half of those surveyed. Among those who didn't, a fortunate 3.3% were able to buy one the same day or ask a friend for one. According to CIS data, the most listened to radio was Radio Nacional, followed by SER and Cope.

In any case, the blackout turned the daily lives of a significant portion of society upside down: 52.5% of those surveyed acknowledge that they felt "very or quite affected," while 46% maintain that they noticed "little or no" effects. Furthermore, 88.2% praised the "civic" behavior of their neighbors during the hours when the power was out.