Spanish Socialist party wins election

The ruling Socialist party in Spain emerged the winner in Sunday’s general election, in which far-right parties made breakthroughs, too. With 99 percent of ballots counted, the party of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez received the most votes but fell short of a majority, securing 123 seats in the 350-member Congress of Deputies. Sánchez said he will soon begin talks with other parties to form a coalition government. The centrist Citizens party said Monday it would not join him, leaving a hazy future for the Spanish government.

“Social democracy has a great future because it has a great present, and Spain is an example of that,” Sánchez said. “We will form a pro-European government to strengthen and not weaken Europe.”

Support for far-right parties has grown as Spain has battled recession and an ongoing pro-independence movement in Catalonia. The far-right Vox party secured 10 percent of the vote, winning 24 parliamentary seats. The party, which formed five years ago, opposes unrestricted migration, multiculturalism, and “radical feminism.” This is the first time a far-right party has won seats in the lower house of parliament since Spain’s dictatorship ended in the 1970s.