Tripping on politics

14 November 2014 By Fiona Maharg-Bravo

The Catalonia issue rages and the rise of Podemos shows how much Spaniards are fed up with corruption. It could lead to a three-way split election in 2015. The upstart protest movement still has much to prove – but the mainstream parties look clueless as to how to respond.

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Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy ruled out talks on a possible referendum on independence in Catalonia on Nov. 12, three days after more than 2 million Catalan citizens took part in an informal consultation, or about 37 percent of those eligible to vote. He urged Catalonia to seek a constitutional reform to resolve its political problems with Madrid.

Meanwhile, Podemos, a Spanish political party formed 10 months ago, would come a close third in a parliamentary election, according to an official poll published on Nov. 5. The next general election is due in late 2015.

Podemos was the most preferred party in the survey from the Centre for Sociological Investigations (CIS), with 17.6 percent of those polled saying they would vote for it, compared to 14.3 percent for the Socialists and 11.7 percent for the PP.

However, the CIS adjusts these percentages based on several variables, including historical data. The result is that Podemos would receive 22.5 percent in a national vote if it were held now - 5 percentage points behind the PP and 1.4 percentage points behind the Socialists, the CIS said.

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