A lost vote that could turn into a win

A lost vote that could turn into a win

On Friday, Sánchez's minority government lost a vote on proposals that would have increased protections for tenants. Since September 23, thousands of people have been protesting in Spain, demanding increased housing availability.

As Reuters notes, Sánchez is counting on an increase in support after Friday's defeat - his proposals were well received by the public, but were rejected by right-wing MPs. This led to planned new public protests over housing.

Sánchez's actions on housing gave the socialist leader a rare chance to present himself as the leader of a mobilized left and divert attention from more politically damaging topics, such as the migrant crisis in Ceuta and corruption scandals, said Lorenzo Bernaldo de Quirós, an economist and president of the consulting firm Freemarket Corporate Intelligence.

"It's a window of opportunity," de Quirós said. If he doesn't call elections soon, (these topics) will come back to the fore, he added.

What would a Sánchez defeat mean?

As Reuters emphasizes, Pedro Sánchez stands out in the arena of world politics for his strong stance on many issues - from support for Palestinian statehood to the fight against "technology oligarchs". However, Sánchez's position was weakened by a series of scandals, including that involving his wife.

Reuters emphasizes that an election defeat would mean the end of one of Europe's last pro-left governments at a time when the far right is achieving unprecedented successes across the region and an increasing number of European voters are turning away from the center. Polls indicate that the most likely scenario in Spain is a coalition government led by the conservative People's Party (Partido Popular, PP) supported by Vox. For the first time since the return of democracy after the death of dictator Francisco Franco, a far-right party could enter the central government.

However, the mission is possible, i.e. how to put together a coalition without a majority

Still, Sánchez, 54, a consummate politician, has repeatedly surprised those who thought he had no chance of governing. Although he never won enough votes to form a majority government, he was able to cobble together seemingly unsustainable coalitions, from far-left groups to the separatist right. Thanks to this, he managed to stay in power for three consecutive terms, lasting eight years.

Sánchez took office after leading a movement to oust center-right Mariano Rajoy amid corruption scandals within Rajoy's People's Party.

Sánchez gained recognition for projects such as the exhumation of Franco from the mausoleum built by the dictator near Madrid and reform of labor law. It led to the lowest level of unemployment in almost two decades.

"Si" for immigration

The current prime minister is also known for his pro-immigration stance. In June 2018, he declared that Spain would accept the rescue ship Aquarius and its 629 passengers after both Italy and Malta refused to allow it to dock in their ports.

While other European countries have tightened their policies towards foreign arrivals, Sánchez has consistently argued that immigration is essential to maintaining Spain's growth. Thanks to it - as he justified - the gaps in key sectors such as construction, agriculture and hotel industry are filled.

Recently, his refusal to agree to US demands to increase defense spending to 5%. GDP, while turning towards China, angered US President Donald Trump and concerned some European leaders. The latter were afraid of Europe being flooded with Chinese goods.