Albert Rivera Faces the Endgame

Ciudadanos, the third party in Spanish politics, is rapidly redefining itself as the fifth party as its leader Albert Rivera flounders in the polls. If the results of the forthcoming elections are as bad as expected, Rivera will probably have to ‘consider his position’, as the British elegantly put it, and resign – probably in favour of Inés Arrimadas.

Rivera is seen by the pundits (and the public) as being the main culprit for the impossibility of a government following last April’s elections, and his volte face now (‘I’ll support the PSOE if necessary after November 10th’ he said recently) makes him look not only foolish, but irresponsible. In another move, Rivera offers a ‘grand agreement’ for ten years between the PSOE, the PP and, er, himself. To be called ‘The Second Transition’. ‘To all row in the same direction’, he says grandly.

Early advert for Ciudadanos (2006)

The PSOE leader Pedro Sánchez answered with ‘We don’t ask for Ciudadanos to support us, merely that they desist from blocking us’.

There’s still money in the party coffers however, as Rivera is found to have paid ‘the most expensive political advert on YouTube in the whole EU’ (60,000€, see it here).

ElDiario.es helpfully provides a cartoon strip explaining his rise and fall. In short, his lack of sound proposals and his support one day for the right, the next for the left, has left his party weakened and, perhaps, rather pointless.

La Vanguardia, through some complicated calculations, says that the disaffected C’s votes will move to the PP, but the PSOE will benefit more, as deputies are chosen proportionally in the provinces, and the party will finally take, with its satellites from the left, a majority.

As the experiment with a plethora of parties slowly palls on the electorate (Vox apparently notwithstanding), ‘The waters are returning to their channel’ says El Economista – the country re-entertains the idea of a two-party system.