The Extremadura elections reignite the battle to the left of the PSOE

MadridOne of the concerns within the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) regarding the upcoming election cycle is the ability of the left-wing parties to withstand the pressure. Socialist sources describe the possibility of several parties running separately as a "disaster," arguing that it could dilute their strength. They urge the parties on this political spectrum to organize themselves to prevent such fragmentation from leaving them without a partner with enough seats to form a coalition government. If Pedro Sánchez manages to hold on until 2027, as he has stated his intention, there is still room for maneuver at the national level. However, the snap election in Extremadura has forced these parties to move quickly to finalize a regional candidacy for December 21st. As a result, this new election has reignited the battle between Sumar and Podemos. On this occasion, the gap between the two parties has once again been laid bare. The possibility of them running together, as happened in the 2023 general election, seems like a pipe dream at the moment. In the case of Extremadura, an electoral coalition has been possible because Movimiento Sumar, Yolanda Díaz's party, will not be part of it. Unidas por Extremadura, the brand that ran in the previous elections, is made up of Podemos, Izquierda Unida, and Alianza Verde. These three parties will repeat the coalition in the new elections, without Díaz's party, which has not campaigned in that region. However, with an eye toward the Andalusian elections, scheduled for June 2026, Podemos has distanced itself from the coalition in which Movimiento Sumar is present. A hypothetical coalition in Castile and León, with elections scheduled for March of next year, also seems unlikely.

United Left, which is part of both the coalition in Extremadura and the one in Andalusia, has questioned Podemos's strategy despite having formed a pact with them. The party's spokesperson in Congress, Enrique Santiago, described the decision-making process of the purple party as "inscrutable." "Why in one place and not in the other? I can't find a logical explanation," he said at a press conference this Tuesday in the lower house. Sources within United Left in Andalusia had hoped that the fact that there was already a "pre-existing unity" in that region, prior to the split between Sumar and Podemos in Congress, could "isolate" Andalusia from the "tensions." However, despite being part of the Por Andalucía coalition, which won five seats in the previous elections, the purple party has refused to participate in the upcoming elections, in which it intends to run independently. This could mean that progressive voters would have four candidates to choose from in Andalusia. Besides the PSOE, Por Andalucía, and Podemos, there is another splinter group to the left of the Socialists, Endavant Andalucía, which backed Teresa Rodríguez after breaking with Podemos and Esquerra Unida years ago. This "disastrous" division, in the PSOE's view, gives breathing room to Juanma Moreno—of the PP—who is under pressure due to the breast cancer screening crisis. For now, Izquierda Unida, Sumar, Iniciativa del Pueblo Andaluz, and Verds-Equo have registered the Por Andalucía brand as a political party this week. Within Podemos, there is no indication of any intention to seek a rapprochement.

The Extremadura case

Unidas por Extremadura, as its name suggests, is a coalition that inherited the legacy of those led by Podemos before the emergence of Sumar. Its lead candidate, Irene de Miguel, is the leader of the purple party in Extremadura, one of the few regions where Podemos retains representation in the regional parliament. The Sumar movement, which It was only six months ago that it was given a structure as a party It has no weight in Extremadura. Hence, Díaz's party has opted not to try to integrate itself into an electoral list and will limit itself to externally supporting the candidacy, which has prevented the coalition from failing.

However, sources within Sumar see it as a contradiction that Podemos is allying with United Left when they made it a condition for running together in the Andalusian elections that they leave the Spanish government. "They know that their territory will be dismantled if they don't give theok", Díaz's team is reflecting on the endorsement Ione Belarra's party gave to De Miguel's coalition. Podemos explains that they aspire to replicate the Extremadura model everywhere to once again establish themselves as the leading party in electoral coalitions with formations like United Left, based on the "real" weight of each party and not by handpicking candidates, as they criticize Sumar for doing on other occasions—a party they don't want to be associated with again.