WHEN deputies vote in Congress tonight (Wednesday), there appears little chance that acting prime minister Mariano Rajoy willachieve the absolute majority required to enable him to form a government. Despite an historic accord with the centrist Ciudadanos party, his centre-right Partido Popular seems destined to be frustrated by the socialist PSOE.
During the investiture debate on Tuesday, Sr Rajoy used his 90-minute speech to call on all parties to allow him to form a new administration or risk jeopardising Spain’s system of democracy, as well as its economic recovery. “I can hardly imagine any greater damage for Spanish democracy than telling people their vote in two previous elections was a waste of time, and that they have to have a general election for the third time,” he said, “Spain urgently needs an efficient government.”
