Spain’s conservatives win Andalusia election but lose absolute majority

Spain’s conservative People’s Party (PP) won the regional election in Andalusia on Sunday but lost the absolute majority it had held since 2022, forcing incumbent regional President Juanma Moreno to seek support from the far-right Vox party to continue governing.

Moreno, candidate of the PP, secured 53 seats in the 109-member regional parliament, two short of the 55 needed for an outright majority, according to the results shared by the EFE news agency.

Despite increasing its vote total by around 146,000 compared to the previous election and surpassing 1.7 million votes, the PP lost five seats amid significantly higher voter turnout, which rose nearly nine percentage points to 64.6%.

The far-right Santiago Abascal-led Vox party increased its representation from 14 to 15 seats, becoming a key force in determining the next government. During the campaign, Vox had already ruled out abstaining in a parliamentary vote to reappoint Moreno and pushed for entering the regional executive.

Maria Jesus Montero, candidate of the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), led the socialists to their worst result ever in Andalusia, winning 28 seats, two fewer than in the previous election.

- Left-wing surprise reshapes parliament

One of the biggest surprises of the election was the strong performance of Forward Andalusia, a left-wing Andalusian nationalist party that increased its representation from two seats to eight.

The party, led by Jose Ignacio Garcia and originally promoted by former Podemos figure Teresa Rodriguez, outperformed the broader left-wing coalition For Andalusia, which remained at five seats despite a higher turnout.

The PP finished first in all eight Andalusian provinces, although Vox overtook the PSOE as the second-largest force in the southeastern province of Almeria.

According to EFE, Montero has admitted that election results are not good and has announced that in the coming days the party bodies will be summoned to analyze the data in depth and "what emerges" from them.