Trudeau in Europe? Leftist governments find footing in Spain and Portugal
| Paris
Spain has seen its fair share of headlines recently, but they have almost always fed the narrative of 鈥渇ragile southern Europe.鈥�
Even with economic recovery, the financial crisis left a generation under-employed and toppled Spain鈥檚 two-party system; the separatist movement rages in Catalonia; corruption brought down the former right-wing government this month.
But the improbable rise of Pedro S谩nchez, whose Social Democrats (PSOE) suffered historic losses in the last election cycles, has in the past week sent a clear message about a new leftist and progressive path for Spain. His first move was to form a government that is majority women, and more than any other in Europe. Days later, when Italy refused to allow a ship of migrants, the聽MS Aquarius, to dock at its ports, Mr.聽S谩nchez welcomed its passengers to Valencia. An opinion piece called him the Justin Trudeau of Europe, after Canada鈥檚 liberal leader.
Why We Wrote This
News out of the European south has often seemed dour lately, because of ongoing economic and migration woes. But Spain and Portugal are offering a new vision for open, socialist government in Europe.
His moves come as Portugal next door has seen another government, led by the center-left with hard-left parties in coalition, defy expectations that it would flail. Together the two could help bolster a mainstream left in Europe that has been challenged by protest parties and struggled to communicate a vision of a country that can grow while protecting citizens, human rights, and a rules-based international system.
鈥淲hen he decides to accept refugees from the Aquarius ship, when he forms a female cabinet, he is sending a message in terms of the symbolic fight, trying to underline the commitment of the government to a more open society,鈥� says Pablo Simon, a professor of political science at Madrid鈥檚 Carlos III University. 鈥淭he Iberian Peninsula could be a good lab to see if these approaches can work or not.鈥�
Welcoming the Aquarius
Europe鈥檚 fractures have been on full display this week over a boat holding 629 people who left the coast of Libya and that Italians refused entry. Malta did too. France blasted Italy for 鈥渃ynicism and irresponsibility;鈥� Italy summoned its French ambassador in response, calling France鈥檚 position hypocritical.
S谩nchez聽was able to rise above the fray, offering the boat passage to the Spanish coast and signaling support for human rights and international law. His gesture also highlighted a relatively open attitude in Spain toward migration, standing in stark contrast to Italy, which is much more burdened by it. Italy's new government, a coalition between two populist parties, won on a promise to clamp down on immigration.
Unlike many countries in Europe, Spain has no viable anti-migration or far-right party, for several reasons including its own emigration and its experience under right-wing dictatorship.
And this move to 鈥渙pen鈥� Spain is highly unlikely to generate backlash in the same way that German Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision in 2015 did, given the orders of magnitude in difference 鈥� 600-odd migrants versus hundreds of thousands who entered Germany. But that could change depending on what happens next, says Xavier Casals, a Spanish historian of the far right. 鈥淣ow we are talking about one boat. What if many come? What part will Spain play?鈥� he says. Spain could make a U-turn and block subsequent arrivals. Or, he says, 鈥渢his case could put immigration on the agenda where it previously hasn鈥檛 been.鈥�
So far it's been broadly accepted, and the PSOE has seen a bounce in opinion polls.
Writing in the Vanguardia, columnist Enric Juliana made a parallel with the fight in the Mediterranean and the contentious Group of Seven summit, comparing聽S谩nchez to Mr. Trudeau, and Italian far-right Interior Minister Matteo Salvini to President Trump.
鈥淎fter having clashed at the summit of the G7 in Quebec on the subject of the organization of world trade, Trump and Trudeau styles meet again in the Mediterranean. Two brands, two patents, two ways of conceiving politics,鈥� he writes. 鈥淭he new Spanish [leader] has chosen the Trudeau concept: a diffuse liberal-progressiveness, based on feminism, empathy, and good intentions.鈥�
Against graft and for gender equality
It is still early days, and the situation is volatile. The PSOE holds just 84 of 350 parliamentary seats, and the no confidence vote that brought聽S谩nchez to power was a bold gamble that he won.
But the government next door in Portugal suggests that such daring propositions can have staying power 鈥� Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa formed his ruling coalition after his Socialist party came in second in 2015 elections. And they have managed to remain popular by combining fiscal discipline with growth policies.
Antonio Costa Pinto, a political expert at University of Lisbon's Institute of Social Sciences, says Portuguese socialists have an easier time than their Spanish counterparts. They hadn鈥檛 fared so poorly in the election cycle in the first place, and Portugal鈥檚 mainstream parties have been less challenged by protest parties. They also don鈥檛 contend with the heady regionalism of Spain 鈥� perhaps riskiest for聽S谩nchez is how to end the standoff over independence in Catalonia.
Mr. Pinto says checking graft and overseeing growth are crucial if the two social democratic parties of the Iberian Peninsula are to attract back more voters who have fled to the harder left and to successfully 鈥渞ebuild a social democratic pact.鈥�
In Spain,聽S谩nchez also forced out his culture and sports minister after less than a week on the job over an old tax violation. It鈥檚 a sign that he is serious that his government will tolerate no corruption. But perhaps nothing has generated as many headlines at home as his appointment of 11 women to his cabinet of 17. They have been called the 鈥渇e-ministers.鈥�
The #MeToo movement here has morphed into a broad demand for gender equality, seen most prominently on March 8 to mark International Women鈥檚 Day. Millions of Spanish workers, backed by unions and top female politicians, went to the streets to strike. Paloma Rom谩n Marug谩n, a political scientist at Complutense University in Madrid, says the new cabinet reflects the leader鈥檚 understanding of a feminist mood in Spain. 鈥淪pain has been a pioneer on many fronts that have to do with gender,鈥� she says, 鈥淲omen here are determined to go as far as possible.鈥�
She sees a brighter scenario for social democracy than at any time in the last decade. 鈥淭he European left had not been able to reinvent itself in these times, especially with the economic crisis,鈥� says Ms. Rom谩n Marug谩n. 鈥淣ow Portugal has stood as a shining example that proves that leftist politics is possible. If Spain joins with them, it can be a hope for the left in Europe.鈥�
