Four deputy presidents: Iglesias and three PSOE women
Friday, January 10, 2020 @ 9:13 AM
FOR the first time in Spain's democratic history, the new government will have four deputy presidents – and three of them will be female.
Leader of left-wing Podemos, Pablo Iglesias, who struck a coalition agreement with elected president Pedro Sánchez of the PSOE (socialists) within 48 hours of the country's going to the polls, will be the 'main' deputy, and supporters of leftist parties believe the combination will work well: the PSOE is more centre-left than 'true' left-wing, whilst Podemos is dubbed 'far left' by its antagonists, meaning the two men will keep each other's policies 'in check' and ensure a good balance.
This is, however, the first coalition government Spain has had since the Transition to democracy in 1975, and is the first left-wing government since 2011, meaning time will tell whether it will be a success or whether at the November 2023 elections, Spaniards opt once again for a right-wing leader.
Current acting deputy president, the PSOE's Carmen Calvo, will continue in the rôle, whilst the present minister for the economy and former director-general for budgets with the European Commission, Galicia-born Nadia Calviño, 51, will join her.
Read more at thinkSPAIN.com