A Party in Peril
The future looks bleak for Spanish socialism. For the left in general. And for the party—the PSOE—that has been the backbone of Spain’s constitutional democracy in particular. It is a critical situation. As some media outlets have headlined, and as can easily be inferred, the party’s headquarters on Calle Ferraz is in a state of permanent tension. The harassment complaints affecting Socialist officials have reignited the debate over the PSOE’s internal management, generated discontent within its ranks, and fuelled criticism from both the opposition and its parliamentary partners.
Defensive resources are increasingly scarce and weak in the rear guard. Demoralisation is spreading, and the worst is feared: who will be left to turn out the lights at the party offices and local branches? Or, put another way, who will retain the minimum credibility and capacity for action needed for a rebuild?
Weeks of Tension and Distraction
It is true that the Socialists are going through weeks of tension following the judicial investigation into certain matters related to the management of public resources and the sexual harassment allegations affecting several of their regional officials. This has overshadowed the recent conviction of the former Attorney General of the State, Álvaro García Ortiz. The right has already claimed its prize, which is what matters, and others will now busy themselves with interpreting the sentence and its loopholes—of which there are many, according to numerous readings.
Resistance Is Not Enough
In general, it is as if the party is fulfilling that maxim of Josip Broz Tito: ‘Resist’. But that is not enough. It is not enough to boast of repugnance in the face of some evidence. A party that is beginning to pay the price for its own ‘caesarism’—a subject we have written about before—with erratic functioning of its organs, and which finds itself overwhelmed without a strategy, a discourse, or decisions on basic matters related to its ideology, must be expected to do more than just resist. This is a Herculean task, to be sure.
But the immense and uncertain labour that lies ahead is also of giant proportions, as Trumpism and its more or less aligned satellites impose authoritarianism, tariffs, Artificial Intelligence, and other methods that cast uncertainty over the future. It is normal, then, that tension is also being felt within the party itself.
Internal Frustration Boils Over
The deputy spokesperson for the PSOE in the Andalusian Parliament, Ángeles Férriz, publicly expressed her exasperation at the harassment episodes, which she described as incompatible with the PSOE’s track record on women’s rights. Férriz insisted that “four scoundrels” cannot be allowed to damage the work of the membership and called for each case to be pursued to the end.
And if the feminist flank is being considerably weakened, the failures and neglect are causing a great deal of damage and noise. The Socialists already know that on this issue, and on several others, they will not be able to lecture anyone. They seemed well-equipped, and there can always be episodes where they correct course and act with more exemplary behaviour, though this may not be valued as much, perhaps due to a lack of a pedagogical approach. But right now, they would be reprimanded for it.
A Battle on All Fronts
This is especially true given certain media treatments that forgive neither a sneeze nor grant the quarter they once might have. But that, aside from being a lost battle because money talks and conservative ideologies are prevailing, is another flank for which a certain skill is required—a skill that will also be a necessity in the intended reconstruction.
As stated: will there be a strategy, the capacity for action, and the human resources to tackle these difficult tasks under very adverse circumstances? Inevitable doubts in what is a crisis marking the end of an era.
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