Feijóo Clears Doubts With Vox

The polls on July 23 left a complex post-election scenario full of traps and dilemmas for the major parties. On the left, PSOE is balancing to gain Puigdemont's support without surrendering the State. On the right, PP is trying to forge a difficult parliamentary majority without giving up unity with Vox.

The formation of the Congress Board opens this Thursday, August 17, the chess game to reach Moncloa. PSOE and PP arrive with very tight forces as a technical tie is currently expected. The key to breaking the tie is held by PNV, so socialists and populars have been courting the Basque nationalists for days.

But in the last few hours, Genoa has made a sharp turn. PP has ruled out offering the presidency of Congress to PNV in exchange for the votes that would guarantee the conservative majority of the Board. It is a reasoned decision aimed at securing the support of Vox's 33 deputies.

Genoa Opts for a Conservative Strategy

The secretary general of Canary Coalition, Fernando Clavijo, opened Pandora's box next weekend by proposing that PNV preside over Congress. Although it needs the support of the Basque nationalists, PSOE closed the door to this option. In Ferraz, they only consider a socialist presidency.

This provided a golden opportunity for PP to tempt PNV. The populars maintained a tense silence for hours but finally announced their rejection of the proposal for a jertzale presidency. Genoa's strategy is to secure the 171 of the conservative bloc and wait for the progressive bloc not to add up.

Attracting PNV would have been a slam on the table. It would not only have put the progressive majority in the Congress Board in check but would have conditioned the already devilish pacts for the investiture. However, making a pact with the nationalists would have jeopardized unity with Vox.

Objective, Maintain the Majority

Faced with the populars' flirtation with the Basques, Vox has warned that they will not support Feijóo if he relies on the separatists. The warning set off all the alarms in Genoa. Losing Vox's 33 deputies would mean losing the majority of 171 seats, which is currently PP's great asset.

The 171 deputies (172 if the support of Canary Coalition falls) are key to presenting Feijóo to King Felipe VI as a candidate to form a government. Additionally, the populars believe it is vital to sustain the narrative that the right won the elections. Finally, there is the tactic of waiting for Sánchez to fail in his alliances.

Without PNV's support, Feijóo is left without options to have the majority in the Congress Board. But that doesn't mean PSOE will achieve the majority. With the support of Sumar, ERC, Eh Bildu, PNV, and BNG (171 votes), it is not enough for the socialists, and they will need the approval of Junts's deputies.

Feijóo Strengthens His Alliance with Vox

PP and Vox were very optimistic after the overwhelming victory of the right in the elections on May 28. But since then, everything has been problems. First, the messes over post-election pacts, then the insufficient majority in the elections on July 23, and finally the crisis opened in Vox.

All this has raised doubts about the solidity of the alliance between the two right-wing parties. Feijóo flirted with PSOE during the election campaign and even opened the door to a minority government with the support of the socialists. Additionally, after Vox's crisis, the possibility arose that PP would take advantage of it to absorb Abascal's party.

With the door slammed on PNV, PP clears doubts and makes it clear that it will face the race to Moncloa hand in hand with Vox. In Genoa, they have opted for the conservative strategy. And this consists of consolidating in the cushion of 171 deputies and waiting for Pedro Sánchez's failure to provide them with a new opportunity.