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Sanchez wins another 4-year term as president of the Spanish government

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Protests continue in Madrid against the socialist government and one politician is egged

Sanchez wins another 4-year term as president of the Spanish government

After two days of deliberation and debate, PSOE leader Pedro Sánchez has secured 179 votes to win another 4-year term as President of the Spanish Government.

However, it was touch and go as Junts held out until the last minute, but the Catalan separatists finally joined Sumar, ERC, EH Bildu, PNV, BNG and the Canary Coalition and voted in favour of the socialists. In reality, the debate was all but a formality and Sánchez’s win was a foregone conclusion.

The other 171 deputies, including PP, VOX and the UPN, unsurprisingly voted against his investiture.

When the result of the vote was announced, half of the House burst into applause while the members of the Socialist Group shouted "president, president" and the opposition deputies gradually left the chamber.

True to form, Sánchez’s opponent for the presidency, the PP’s Alberto Núñez Feijóo, offered the new leader a hearty congratulations, as did the rest of the defeated deputies with the notable exception of VOX.

Feijóo made his feelings very clear when he left the building though.

"The ambition of the now president has led us to a dead end," he said, adding that his party will work to try "to return sanity."

While the parties are celebrating inside Congress, outside the streets are still filled with angry protestors demonstrating against the amnesty pact the president has made with the separatists.

Dos chicas vienen a defender a Pedro Sánchez al Congreso pic.twitter.com/PMhJAeeTzr
— Santos (@dsantosfacher) November 16, 2023

Just before the result was announced, a scrap broke out between two PSOE supporters and the rest of those gathered against the socialist leader's investiture, and the fight had to be broken up by some of the 1,600 National Police officers hired to keep the peace.

And first thing Thursday morning, November 16, the socialist deputy for Teruel, Herminio Sancho, was attacked while having breakfast in a bar close to the Congress building. According to witnesses, a group of protestors began hurling "gross insults" at Mr Sancho before firing an egg at his head.

In other news: Dozens of Brits refused entry into Spain from Gibraltar

Images: José Manuel Albares / Twitter

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