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[1/9] Spain's opposition People's Party leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo reacts after giving a speech during an investiture debate at parliament in Madrid, Spain, September 26, 2023. REUTERS/Juan Medina Acquire Licensing RightsMADRID, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Spain's rightwing opposition leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo on Tuesday launched a likely fruitless bid to form a government following an election in which no party won a majority. Feijoo will get a second vote on Friday, which only requires a simple majority. If, as expected, Feijoo fails, acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who leads the Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE), will have two months from Wednesday to make his bid before parliament is dissolved and fresh elections are called. In his speech, Feijoo outlined the policy proposals he would carry out as prime minister, including lowering taxes for entrepreneurs and low- and middle-income earners and devising a plan to capture foreign investment.

Persons: Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Juan Medina, Feijoo's, Feijoo, Pedro Sanchez, Sanchez, Eurointelligence, Esquerra, Belen Carreno, Emma Pinedo, Charlie Devereux, Bernadette Baum Organizations: People's, REUTERS, Rights, Feijoo's People's Party, Debating, Spanish Socialist Workers Party, PSOE, Vox, Union, Canarian Coalition, Basque Nationalist Party, Galician Nationalist Bloc, Thomson Locations: Madrid, Spain, Rights MADRID, Catalonia, Catalan, Basque

☆ Meloni’s Italian job is a lesson for EU’s right
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( Lisa Jucca | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

This is particularly true of Meloni’s surprise decision in August to tax what she called “unjust profits” by domestic banks. Ill-fated tax credits for building renovations introduced by a previous executive are expected to balloon to up to 150 billion euros, UniCredit analysts reckon. That’s 30 billion euros higher than what the current government predicted in April, or around 1.5% of GDP. That’s Meloni’s biggest Italian lesson for parties like Vox and AfD. CONTEXT NEWSThe Italian Treasury will present new economic targets on Sept. 28, which will be the framework for the country’s 2024 budget.

Persons: Spain’s, Benito Mussolini’s “, Rome ”, Ursula von der Leyen, Meloni, Vladimir Putin, –, Silvio Berlusconi, Matteo Salvini – Meloni, ”, Mario Draghi’s, it’s, Giancarlo Giorgetti, Liz Truss, Meloni’s, Vox, Giorgia Meloni, Francesco Guerrera, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, NATO, European Union, EU, Commission, Economy, Italian Treasury, Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy, Ukraine, Kyiv, China, Greece, Brussels, British, Italian

☆ Socialists would win Spain election over conservative PP, poll shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez arrives to address the 78th Session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York City, U.S., September 20, 2023. Most parties - except PSOE - and rival private pollsters have questioned the agency's neutrality and methodology. The new poll gives third place to the left-wing alliance Sumar at 11.9% and fourth to the far-right Vox with 11.1%. Should those efforts to woo the pro-independence parties prove to be unsuccessful, a repeat election would be held in mid-January. Reporting by David Latona; Editing by Andrei Khalip and Barbara LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Eduardo Munoz, Vox, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, David Latona, Andrei Khalip, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Spain's, General Assembly, REUTERS, Rights, Spain's Socialists, People's Party, for Sociological Studies, CIS, Socialist Party, PSOE, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Rights MADRID, Sumar, Navarre, Catalan, Basque, Madrid

☆ The vicious cycle of homeowners insurance: It's increasingly expensive to protect homes in the disaster-prone areas that need it most
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Dan Latu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Earlier this year, Allstate joined State Farm in no longer offering new home insurance in California over climate risk. Across the country, 83% of prospective homebuyers said climate risk factored into where they are shopping for homes, according to a recent Zillow study. Danny Collins of Hobe Sound, Florida, told Insider in July how the bank holding his mortgage raised his monthly rate by $1,000, citing increased flood insurance. Matheus told Insider. Have you moved or are you considering a move because of climate risk and extreme weather events?

Persons: Carolyn Kousky, Berkshire Hathaway, Vox, Dave Jones, they'll, Danny Collins, Collins, Bob Stephens, Stephens, Martha Flanagan, Jason Beury, Charles Matheus, Kelly Roberge, Matheus, Dan Latu Organizations: Service, The Washington Post, Environmental Defense Fund, Allstate, Berkshire, Nationwide, National Association of Insurance, . Erie Insurance Group, Washington Post, State Farm, Farmers Insurance, Insurance, Wall Street, Journal, Hobe, Marathon Locations: Florida, Kansas, New York, California, Louisiana, United States, Coral, Florida's, Hobe Sound, Arizona, Brooklyn , New York, Kansas City , Kansas, Utica , New York, dlatu@insider.com

☆ Exiled Catalan leader sets tough terms for talks on Spain's new PM
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Bart Biesemans | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez would need the seven lawmakers in Carles Puigdemont's Junts per Catalunya party if he gets a shot at forming a government. Speaking in Brussels, Puigdemont called on Spain to respect the Catalan independence movement's legitimacy and abandon judicial actions against it. "A world separates us from those positions," Rodriguez told reporters of Puigdemont's conditions. "Our framework is the one that the prime minister expressed with absolute forcefulness yesterday: We have a tool, dialogue; a framework, the constitution; and an objective: coexistence." If Feijoo fails, it will fall on Sanchez to see if he can muster support, seen as impossible without Puigdemont's party.

Persons: Junts, Pedro Sanchez, Carles Puigdemont's Junts, Puigdemont, Isabel Rodriguez, Rodriguez, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Feijoo, Sanchez, Oriol Bartomeus, Bartomeus, Bart Biesemans, Inti Landauro, Emma Pinedo, David Latona, Charlie Devereux, Andrei Khalip, Peter Graff, Alison Williams Organizations: Socialist, Socialists, People's Party, Autonomous University of Barcelona, PSOE, Vox, Inti, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, Catalonia, Spain, Catalunya, Brussels, Belgium, Madrid

☆ Spain's acting PM rejects conservative leader's request to back 2-year government
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

He had asked Sanchez, a Socialist, in a meeting earlier on Wednesday to back him in exchange for policy pacts. "Unfortunately, what I have obtained, as far as I understood, is a no," Feijoo told reporters after the meeting. Sanchez did not talk to the media, but his Socialist party's spokesperson Pilar Alegria confirmed to reporters the party will not support Feijoo's premiership bid. In a written document handed to Sanchez, the conservative candidate to premiership had said the two-year government would be extended if both parties agreed. On Aug. 17, Sanchez's Socialists party managed to secure 178 votes with support from left-wing and regionalist parties to get its candidate elected as speaker.

Persons: Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Violeta Santos Moura, Pedro Sanchez, Feijoo, Sanchez, Pilar Alegria, King Felipe, Vox, Emma Pinedo, Inti, Andrei Khalip, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: People's, REUTERS, Rights, Party, Socialist, Sanchez's Socialists, Thomson Locations: Madrid, Spain

REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura Acquire Licensing RightsMADRID, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Spanish society must break a "pact of silence" and stop normalizing sexist behaviour as well as better support women brave enough to speak out when it happens, acting Equality Minister Irene Montero said on Wednesday. "Spain is a feminist society in which sexism still exists, but it is determined to end sexism," Montero said. "Perhaps it would have been desirable for this pact of silence to be broken with more force and forcefulness. Spain is now under a caretaker government after an inconclusive election in July that was marked by heated debate over women´s rights. However, Vox called for Rubiales to resign, citing behaviour incompatible with the presidency of a federation.

Persons: Irene Montero, Luis Rubiales, Jennifer Hermoso, Violeta Santos Moura, Montero, Jenni Hermoso, Rubiales, Hermoso, Pedro Sanchez, Vox, Queen Letizia, Miguel Gutierrez, Belen Carreno, Charlie Devereux, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Reuters, Spanish FA, REUTERS, Rights, Spanish Football Association, FIFA, England, Hermoso, Prosecutors, Thomson Locations: Madrid, Spain, Spanish, Rubiales, Sydney

☆ Disney, The New York Times and CNN are among a dozen major media companies blocking access to ChatGPT as they wage a cold war on A.I.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The Guardian’s Ariel Bogle reported last week that CNN, The New York Times, and Reuters had blocked GPTBot. Publishers such as Condé Nast, Hearst, and Vox Media, which all house several prominent publications, have also taken the defensive measure. The deep archives and intellectual property rights of these news organizations are immensely valuable — arguably crucial — to training A.I. “I see a heightened sense of urgency when it comes to addressing the use, and misuse, of our content,” Coffey said. News organizations might feel they’re on solid legal ground, as Coffey told me, but there has yet to be any serious action taken against the OpenAI.

Persons: Ariel Bogle, Condé Nast, GPTBot, Danielle Coffey, Coffey, newsrooms “, ” Coffey, Barry Diller, OpenAI, “, ”, they’re Organizations: CNN —, CNN, The New York Times, Reuters, Disney, Bloomberg, The Washington Post, ABC News, ESPN, Hearst, Vox Media, News Media Alliance, Associated Press Locations: The, …

☆ A country where kissing is a custom reels from a major exception
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-27 | by ( Al Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Madrid CNN —In Spain kissing is a widely-accepted custom. Friends and family do it, whether woman to woman, woman to man, or man to man. A day after the kiss, Rubiales said he had “made a mistake,” but since then has insisted that it was consensual. But more broadly, men are still in a power position in many activities and endeavors across the country, including at work. For Spain’s women’s soccer team, there have been protests over lower pay than the men’s national team.

Persons: ”, Luis Rubiales, Jennifer Hermoso, Hermoso, Rubiales, “, haven’t, ” Tania Verge Mestre, Verge Mestre, who’s Organizations: Madrid CNN —, Spanish, Spain, England, FIFA, Sports, Hermoso, CNN, IESE, Vox Locations: Madrid, Spain, Catalonia, Barcelona

☆ Media and entertainment companies are finding more investment from the Middle East, but it can come with controversy. Here are 11 of the most notable deals.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Insider broke down 11 top media companies with Middle Eastern backing or partnerships. Middle Eastern investment has poured into US media and entertainment, and US media companies have been eager recipients. Here's a rundown of 11 key Western media and entertainment companies, listed alphabetically, that have licensing and investment partnerships with Middle Eastern entities. Jimmy Finkelstein's news startup The Messenger has Middle Eastern funding via its acquisition of IMI-backed startup Grid, which is now shuttered. The North Road, Peter Chernin and Providence Equity's production roll-up, took a $150 million investment in January from the Qatar Investment Authority, Qatar's main investment vehicle, to support its expansion.

Persons: Peter Chernin, Jeff Zucker, Uber, Jamal Khashoggi's, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, —, hasn't, Mohammed bin Salman, SRMG, Abu, Abu Dhabi's, Jimmy Finkelstein's, BeIn, Stone, Ian Orefice, WBD Organizations: Providence, North, IMI, ex, CNN, Public Investment Fund, Blackstone, Washington Post, Saudi Crown, Saudi, Guardian, Media, Bloomberg Media, Saudi Research, Media Group, Media Investments, CNN Business, Abu Dhabi Media Investment Corporation, Sky News Arabia, Business, Independent, SRMG, Miramax, BeIn, Paramount, Qatar Investment Authority, Penske Media Corporation, Billboard, Variety, Penske, Vox Media, New York, Billboard Arabia, RedBird Capital, Mideast, MBC Group, MBC, Fortress Investment Group, Investment, Warner Bros Locations: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, West, Saudi, Abu Dhabi, ViacomCBS, SRMG

☆ Spanish king nominates conservative Feijoo for premiership bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Spain's King Felipe on Tuesday nominated the leader of the conservative People's Party (PP), Alberto Nunez Feijoo, to face a parliamentary vote for prime minister, according to lower house speaker Francina Armengol. No single party or bloc earned an outright majority of seats in the snap general election. Earlier on Tuesday, acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that he believed his Socialist party would be able "to gather the parliamentary support needed" to form a government. Her appointment was seen as a nod to smaller regional parties, whose support Sanchez would need in a potential bid should Feijoo fail. If no candidate secures a majority within two months of the first vote, new elections have to be called.

Persons: King Felipe, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Francina, Feijoo, Feijoo's PP, Pedro Sanchez, Armengol, Esquerra Republicana, Sanchez, Pietro Lombardi, David Latona, Andrei Khalip, Mark Porter, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: People's Party, Socialist, Sanchez's Socialists, ERC, Thomson Locations: MADRID, Balearic, Catalonia

☆ On Maui, a perfect storm of climate, colonialism, and failed emergency systems made the deadliest US wildfire in over a century
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( Maiya Focht | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

A deadly wildfire raged through the Hawaiian town of Lahaina, killing at least 111 people, last week. Aerial view shows destroyed homes and buildings near Front Street in Lahaina Town on August 10, 2023. Colonialism: Plantations brought the perfect wildfire fuel, an invasive grassLahaina was once the capital of the indigenous Hawaiian kingdom. Smoke and flames rise in Lahaina, Maui County, Hawaii, U.S., August 8, 2023 in this still image from video obtained from social media. A Mercy Worldwide volunteer makes damage assessment of charred apartment complex in the aftermath of a wildfire in Lahaina, western Maui, Hawaii on August 12, 2023.

Persons: Patrick T, Fallon, Jeff Masters, YUKI IWAMURA, Clay Trauernicht, Erin Hawk, We've, Abby Frazier, PATRICK T, FALLON, Dora, Dora didn't, Judson Jones, Jeff Melichar, didn't, Anne Lopez, Herman Andaya Organizations: Service, Getty, Yale, Washington Post, Plantations, Hawaii Public Radio, University of Hawaii, Maui . Flames, Reuters, Clark University, New York Times, REUTERS, ABC7, Mercy Worldwide Locations: Lahaina, Maui, Lahaina Town, Hawaii, U.S, Maui County, AFP

☆ Spanish Socialists' candidate elected speaker with support of Catalan groups
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Francina Armengol was appointed speaker after winning 178 votes in the 350-seat parliament. The candidate of the conservative People's Party (PP) won just 137 votes, while far-right Vox, which is in coalition with the PP in several Spanish regions, voted for its own candidate, Ignacio Gil instead of the PP's. Her candidacy for the speakership was seen as a nod to Catalan, Basque and Galician parties. CONCESSIONS TO SEPARATISTSERC leader Gabriel Rufian told a news conference that while the party had supported the Socialists' candidate for congressional speaker, that did not imply support for the formation of a Sanchez government. More hardline separatist party Junts also struck a deal in principle to back Armengol, according to state broadcaster TVE.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez's, Francina Armengol, Ignacio Gil, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Sumar, Esquerra Republicana, Armengol, Gabriel Rufian, Junts, Sanchez, Carles Puigdemont, Inti Landauro, Charlie Devereux, Andrei Khalip, Angus MacSwan, Aislinn Laing, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Spanish Socialist Workers ' Party, PSOE, Spain's Socialists, People's Party, Socialists, Vox, Catalonian, ERC, TVE, Thomson Locations: Madrid, MADRID, Catalan, Spain, Catalonia, Balearic, Basque, Galician, Belgium

☆ Opinion: Hitting the gym or going to yoga? Your workout clothes could be doing more harm than you realize
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Opinion Alden Wicker | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

BPA is an endocrine disruptor, meaning that it mimics or interferes with the body’s hormones. It governs weight management and your energy levels, not to mention your skin’s appearance and your ability to fend off illness. Others have tried to argue that some of the chemicals in clothing fell within the legal and regulatory limits. The signs that something is very, very wrong with our reproductive health and endocrine systems are myriad. After all, you might be undoing the benefits of hitting the gym every day when your workout clothes could be doing so much damage to your health.

Persons: Alden Wicker, Athleta, Alden Wicker Alden Wicker, There’s, bisphenol, Ashley Eskew, “, Thinx, ” Dr, Laura Vandenberg, Down, ”, Shanna, Dr, Graham Peaslee, PFAS, Swan, lipsticks, ‘, ” Eskew, Eskew Organizations: New York Times, Vox, Wired, CNN, Center for Environmental Health, Nike, IKEA, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, CBC, US Environmental Protection Agency, Industry, University of Massachusetts Amherst, of Environmental Health Sciences, Notre, Twitter Locations: Putnam, California, Patagonia, ” North Carolina, Spain

☆ At mass grave exhumation, daughter of Spanish Civil War victim seeks closure
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-13 | by ( Juan Medina | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"I want to know where he is because I have never known," Navacerrada told Reuters this week at the cemetery of Colmenar Viejo where two mass graves have been found. A total of 108 civilians, many associated with leftist parties and unions, were executed and buried at the Colmenar Viejo cemetery between April and December of 1939. The exhumation of the first mass grave started last year with the financial support of Spain's leftist government and led to finding the remains of 12 people. Spain transitioned to democracy following Franco's death in 1975 but the legacy of his four-decade fascist dictatorship still divides Spanish society. Reporting by Juan Medina Additional reporting and writing by Joan Faus Editing by Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Benita Navacerrada Lopez, Facundo Navacerrada Perdiguero, Francisco Franco, Read, Navacerrada, exhumations, Pedro Sanchez, Vox, Luis Perez Lara, San Sebastian de los Reyes, Juan Medina, Joan Faus, Frances Kerry Organizations: Science Society, Reuters, Socialist, People's Party, Vox, Thomson Locations: Colmenar, VIEJO, Spain, Madrid, Colmenar Viejo, Spanish, San Sebastian

☆ Spain's PP sees path to power after hard-right Vox dials down demands
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( Charlie Devereux | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The PP´s general coordinator Elias Bendodo said the gesture would clear the way for other minor parties which objected to Vox's involvement to support the PP in an investiture vote. But Bendodo's claim was swiftly rebutted by the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV), which said on the social media platform X that its position had not changed. The PNV has said it would not negotiate with the PP to form a government involving Vox. Spain´s election last month ended in a stalemate with neither right-wing nor left-wing blocs winning enough seats for a majority. Since it won the most seats, Spain´s King Felipe VI is expected to give the PP the first stab at forming a government when parliament is convened on Aug. 17.

Persons: Vox, Elias Bendodo, Bendodo, Spain ´, King Felipe VI, Mariano Rajoy ´, Sumar, David Latona, Aislinn Laing, Christina Fincher Organizations: People's Party, Socialists, Basque, Radio COPE, Basque Nationalist Party, Vox, PSOE, Coalicion Canaria, Thomson Locations: MADRID, Spanish, Catalan, Spain, Basque, Coalicion

☆ From Portugal to Portland
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( German Lopez | More About German Lopez | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

When Oregon was getting ready to vote on whether to decriminalize all drugs in 2020, I was covering the story for Vox. During my interviews with the leaders of the decriminalization campaign, they often cited Portugal. Even as Portugal ended prison time for drug possession, it created a unique system that pushed people to stop using drugs — sometimes with the continued threat of penalties, like the revocation of a person’s professional license. Oregon didn’t plan to enact similarly tough penalties, and advocates for decriminalization did not have a clear explanation for why their law would work as well as Portugal’s. Our conversations left me wondering whether Oregon could repeat Portugal’s successes if the decriminalization initiative passed.

Persons: Vox Locations: Oregon, Portugal

Spain's Socialist leader and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, salutes his supporters during the general election, in Madrid, Spain, July 23, 2023. Spain has a sticky diplomatic relationship with Morocco over issues including migration, airspace, territorial waters, customs and land borders. Madrid said it regarded Rabat's autonomy proposal for Western Sahara as "serious, credible and realistic". Moroccan media first reported - and welcomed - Sanchez's choice of holiday destination. The site praised Sanchez's closeness to Morocco "although many Spanish politicians reproach him for it", contrasting his stance to that of his political rivals in Madrid.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Nacho, Spain's, Sanchez, Podemos, Idoia Villanueva, Villanueva, Miguel Tellado, Vox, David Latona, Angus McDowall, Aislinn Laing, Nick Macfie Organizations: Socialist, REUTERS, Sanchez's Socialists, Polisario, Twitter, People's Party, Onda, Thomson Locations: Madrid, Spain, Morocco, Western Sahara, Spanish, Algeria, Polisario, Moroccan, London

☆ Spanish Socialists lose seat, after expat vote count, making it harder to form government
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-29 | by ( Graham Keeley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Counting of votes from over 233,000 Spaniards living abroad handed one seat in Madrid to the PP that had been awarded to the Socialists in the initial vote count, the PP and Socialists said on Saturday. To form a government, an absolute majority is needed in a parliamentary vote in the 350-seat Congress. This meant Sanchez only had to persuade Junts to abstain, to be voted back into power with a simple majority. Alberto Nunez Feijoo, the PP leader, is still determined to try to form a right-wing coalition. Sumar leader Yolanda Díaz called on all "progressive forces" to support Sanchez.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Juan Medina, Sunday's, Esquerra, Junts, Sanchez, EH, Vox, Pablo Simon, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Feijoo, Pedro Rollan, Sumar, Yolanda Díaz, Graham Keeley, Alvise Armellini, Frances Kerry Organizations: Socialist, REUTERS, Spain's Socialists, Reuters, ERC, Socialists, Vox, Union of, Canarian Coalition, Basque Nationalist Party, Galician Nationalist Bloc, UPN, Canaries, PP, Carlos III University, Italian, Repubblica, Thomson Locations: Madrid, Spain, BARCELONA, Catalan, Basque, Junts, Catalonia, Spanish, Rome

[1/2] "Junts x Catalunya" members raise up an "Estelada" flag (Catalan separatist flag) as they celebrate the results of the European Parliament elections in Barcelona, Spain, May 27, 2019. REUTERS/Albert Gea/File PhotoBARCELONA/MADRID, July 26 (Reuters) - Spain may be heading for a repeat of Sunday's inconclusive election unless Catalan separatist parties compromise on their demands for an independence referendum in exchange for their support. After neither the right nor left bloc won enough seats to form a majority, Catalan separatist parties Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC) and Junts have emerged as kingmakers. However, Sanchez, who rejects Catalan independence, has long said he opposes a referendum or an amnesty. INDEPENDENCE SUPPORT DECLININGEven if Sanchez were willing to concede, a referendum could prove difficult to implement.

Persons: Albert Gea, Esquerra, Pedro Sanchez, Sanchez, Junts, Carles Puigdemont, Ramon Tremosa, mignon, Tremosa, Josep Rius, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Feijoo, Mariano Rajoy, Joan Esculies, Isabel Rodriguez, Yolanda Diaz, Diaz, Jaume Asens, Puigdemont, Wayne Griffiths, Rius, Pedro Sanchez's, Joan Faus, Belen Carreno, Charlie Devereux, Aislinn Laing, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, ERC, Junts, Sanchez's Socialists, Socialists, European Union, People's Party, Socialist, Monday, Volkswagen's, SEAT, Catalans, Vox, Thomson Locations: Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain, BARCELONA, MADRID, Catalan, Catalonia, Belgium, Socialist, Madrid, Volkswagen's Barcelona, Spanish

☆ Spain vote stalemate requires winner to drop out
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, July 24 (Reuters Breakingviews) - After Sunday’s election, neither the conservative People’s Party nor the governing Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party are likely to have enough support to rule. But he could shorten the pain by declining to form a government, paving the way for another poll in the autumn. The snap election called by left-wing Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in May failed to deliver either bloc the 176 parliamentary seats needed to govern. Since Sánchez is also unlikely to muster enough support, that would give Spaniards another chance to choose a leader in cooler conditions. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Alberto Núñez Feijóo, Pedro Sánchez, King Felipe VI’s, Mariano Rajoy, Francesco Guerrera, George Hay, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, People’s Party, Spanish Socialist Workers ’ Party, El, Vox, PSOE, Spanish, Twitter, Thomson Locations: “ El Gobierno, el aire, El Pais

The ruling Socialists (PSOE) and far-left Sumar won 153 but have more possibilities for negotiating support from small Basque and Catalan separatist parties, as they did following 2019's election. Sanchez could win over left-wing separatist party Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC). Junts Secretary General Jordi Turull said on Monday he would use the "window of opportunity" created by the election impasse to achieve Catalan independence. Turull was among the nine Catalan jailed separatist leaders pardoned by Sanchez in 2021 for their role in the 2017 independence bid. Puigdemont, who still wields considerable influence within Junts, said in mid-July the party would not support Sanchez because he was unreliable.

Persons: Sanchez, Carles Puigdemont, Pedro Sanchez, Vox, Sumar, Esquerra, Jordi Turull, Turull, Puigdemont, Joan Esculies, Esculies, Antoni Comin, Clara Ponsati, Yves Herman, Franco, Spain's, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, PNV, Arnaldo Otegi, Otegi, Joan Faus, Belen Carreno, Emma Pinedo, Inti Landauro, Charlie Devereux, Angus MacSwan, Aislinn Laing Organizations: Exiled, Catalan, Socialist, People's Party, Socialists, PSOE, ERC, Junts, RAC, REUTERS, Reuters, Basque, Vox, Thomson Locations: Spain, Exiled Catalan, BARCELONA, MADRID, Belgium, Catalonia, Puigdemont's, Basque, Catalan, Junts, Madrid, Brussels, Canary Islands, Galicia, Navarra, Barcelona

☆ What the Collapse of Spain’s Far Right Means Going Forward
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Jason Horowitz | More About Jason Horowitz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Europe’s liberal and moderate establishment breathed easier on Monday after Spain’s nationalist Vox party faltered in Sunday’s elections, stalling for now a surge from far-right parties around the continent that seemed on the brink of washing over even the progressive bastion of Spain. But instead of Vox becoming the first hard-right party to enter government in Spain since the end of the Franco dictatorship nearly 50 years ago, as many polls had predicted, it sank. The party’s poor returns at the polls also took down the underperforming center-right conservatives who had depended on Vox’s support to form a government. As a result, no single party or coalition immediately gained enough parliamentary seats to govern, thrusting Spain into a familiar political muddle and giving new life to Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who only days ago seemed moribund. Suddenly, Mr. Sánchez appeared best positioned to cobble together another progressive government in the coming weeks to avoid new elections.

Persons: “, ”, Giorgia Meloni, Vox, Pedro Sánchez, Sánchez Organizations: Vox, Repubblica Locations: Spain, Europe, Italy

That would cost the EU its figurehead in international climate negotiations and the politician who drove through Europe's toughest measures yet to cut planet-warming emissions. The move was at odds with the U.S., and faced ire from some EU countries who felt it gave too much away. Ribera's role at the helm of Spain's green agenda is on the line after a snap election on Sunday ended with gridlock. The EU wants to pass at least two more green policies before EU elections next year - the nature law and electricity market reforms. Spain - whose current government typically backs ambitious EU climate policies - holds the EU's rotating presidency, and will chair EU countries' negotiations on all new laws until 2024.

Persons: gridlock, Frans Timmermans, Michael Bloss, Timmermans, Teresa Ribera, Linda Kalcher, Ribera's, She's, Kalcher, Ribera, Emmanuel Macron, Pablo Simon, Carlos, Kate Abnett, Pietro Lombardi, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: EU, European, UN, Green, U.S, SECOND, gridlock, People's Party, Carlos III University, Thomson Locations: Spain, lurch BRUSSELS, Dutch, Santiago, Chile, Ribera, Europe, Italy

The results from Sunday's vote left neither the left nor right bloc with an easy path to form a government. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez' Socialists have more options but face potentially unpalatable demands from Catalan separatist parties. Those could include insistence on an independence referendum, triggering the kind of political chaos seen in 2017 when Catalonia last tried to break from Spain. Sanchez could win over left-wing separatist party Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC), as he did to form a minority government in 2019. The Socialists, which oppose independence and any vote on the issue, may have a hard time accepting such a demand.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Begona Gomez, applauds, gridlock, Ignacio Jurado, Vox, Sumar, Sanchez, Esquerra, Junts, Miriam Nogueras, Carles Puigdemont, Ignacio Torreblanca, Charlie Devereux, Belen Carreno, Joan Faus, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: Socialist, REUTERS, Carlos III University, People's Party, Socialists, PSOE, ERC, Congress, Spanish, European Council, Foreign Relations, Thomson Locations: Madrid, Spain, Catalan, MADRID, Catalonia, Belgium, Basque, Barcelona

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