The People's Party ( ; known mostly by its acronym, PP ) is a
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
and
Christian democratic
Christian democracy is an ideology inspired by Christian social teaching to respond to the challenges of contemporary society and politics.
Christian democracy has drawn mainly from Catholic social teaching and neo-scholasticism, as well ...
political party in Spain.
The People's Party was a 1989 re-foundation of
People's Alliance (AP), a party led by former minister
Manuel Fraga
Manuel Fraga Iribarne (; 23 November 1922 – 15 January 2012) was a Spanish professor and politician during the dictatorship of Francisco Franco, who was also one of the founders of the People's Alliance (Spain), People's Alliance (AP). Fraga ...
. It was founded in 1976 as alliance of post-Francoist proto-parties. The new party combined the conservative
AP with several small Christian democratic and
liberal parties (the party calling this fusion of views "the Reformist Centre"). In 2002, Manuel Fraga received the honorary title of "Founding Chairman". The party's youth organisation is
New Generations of the People's Party of Spain (NNGG).
The PP is a member of the centre-right
European People's Party
The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian democracy, Christian democratic, liberal conservatism, liberal-conservative, and conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other p ...
(EPP), and in the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...
its 16
MEPs
A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and Steel Comm ...
sit in the
EPP Group. The PP is also a member of the
Centrist Democrat International
The Centrist Democrat International (CDI; , IDC) is a political international inspired by the values of Christian democracy. Until 2001, it was known as the Christian Democrat International (CDI); before 1999, it was known as the Christian Demo ...
and the
International Democracy Union
The International Democracy Union (IDU; known as the International Democrat Union until September 2023) is an international alliance of centre-right to right-wing political parties. Headquartered in Munich, Germany, the IDU consists of 84 fu ...
. The PP was also one of the founding organisations of the Budapest-based
Robert Schuman Institute
The Union of the Robert Schuman Institute for Developing Democracy in Central and Eastern Europe (short: Robert Schuman Institute, RSI) is the European level training institution of the European People's Party political family, based in Budape ...
for Developing Democracy in Central and Eastern Europe.
On 24 May 2018, the
National Court found that the PP profited from the illegal kickbacks-for-contracts scheme of the
Gürtel case
The Gürtel case was a major political corruption scandal in Spain that implicated hundreds of officers of the People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP), Spain's major Conservatism, conservative party, some of whom were subsequently forced to ...
, confirming the existence of an illegal accounting and financing structure that ran in parallel with the party's official one since the party's foundation in 1989; the court ruled that the PP helped establish "a genuine and effective system of institutional corruption through the manipulation of central, autonomous and local public procurement". This prompted a
no confidence vote on
Mariano Rajoy
Mariano Rajoy Brey (, ; born 27 March 1955) is a Spanish politician who served as Prime Minister of Spain from 2011 to 2018, when a 2018 vote of no confidence in the government of Mariano Rajoy, vote of no confidence ousted his government. A m ...
's government, which was brought down on 1 June 2018 in the first successful motion since the
Spanish transition to democracy
The Spanish transition to democracy, known in Spain as (; ) or (), is a period of History of Spain, modern Spanish history encompassing the regime change that moved from the Francoist dictatorship to the consolidation of a parliamentary system ...
. On 5 June 2018, Rajoy announced his resignation as PP leader.
On 21 July 2018,
Pablo Casado was elected as the new leader of the PP. Under his leadership, the party was claimed to take a right-wing turn, including forging local alliances with the far-right
Vox party. However, Casado later bet on breaking ties with Vox, and caused an unprecedented leadership crisis inside PP. After this there were rumors that Casado had ordered to spy on the popular president of the community of Madrid,
Isabel Díaz Ayuso, for alleged irregularities, which collapsed popular support for PP according to opinion polls for future national elections, being resolved with the resignation of Casado and the appointment of the veteran
Alberto Núñez Feijóo
Alberto Núñez Feijóo (, ; born 10 September 1961) is a Spanish politician who serves as Member of the Congress of Deputies and as president of the People's Party (Spain), People's Party. He served as the president of the Regional Government o ...
as the new leader, which improved the electoral expectations of the party. The party won the most votes in the
2023 general election, but it failed to secure a parliamentary majority.
History
Political genealogy
The party has its roots in the People's Alliance founded on 9 October 1976 by former
Francoist minister
Manuel Fraga
Manuel Fraga Iribarne (; 23 November 1922 – 15 January 2012) was a Spanish professor and politician during the dictatorship of Francisco Franco, who was also one of the founders of the People's Alliance (Spain), People's Alliance (AP). Fraga ...
. Although Fraga was a member of the reformist faction of the Franco regime, he supported an extremely gradual transition to democracy. However, he badly underestimated the public's distaste for Francoism. Additionally, while he attempted to convey a reformist image, the large number of former Francoists in the party led the public to perceive it as both
reactionary
In politics, a reactionary is a person who favors a return to a previous state of society which they believe possessed positive characteristics absent from contemporary.''The New Fontana Dictionary of Modern Thought'' Third Edition, (1999) p. 729. ...
and
authoritarian
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and ...
. In the June
1977 general election, the AP garnered only 8.3 percent of the vote, putting it in fourth place.
In the months following the 1977 elections, dissent erupted within the AP over constitutional issues that arose as the draft document was being formulated. Fraga had wanted from the beginning to brand the party as a traditional European conservative party, and wanted to move the AP toward the political centre in order to form a larger
centre-right
Centre-right politics is the set of right-wing politics, right-wing political ideologies that lean closer to the political centre. It is commonly associated with conservatism, Christian democracy, liberal conservatism, and conservative liberalis ...
party. Fraga's wing won the struggle, prompting most of the disenchanted reactionaries to leave the party. The AP then joined with other moderate conservatives to form the
Democratic Coalition (''Coalición Democrática,'' CD).
It was hoped that this new coalition would capture the support of those who had voted for the
Union of the Democratic Centre (UCD) in 1977, but who had become disenchanted with the
Adolfo Suárez
Adolfo Suárez González, 1st Duke of Suárez (; 25 September 1932 – 23 March 2014) was a Spanish lawyer and politician. Suárez was Spain's first democratically elected Prime Minister of Spain, prime minister since the Second Spanish Republi ...
government. In the March
1979 general election, however, the CD received 6.1 percent of the vote, again finishing a distant fourth.
At the AP's Second Party Congress in December 1979, party leaders re-assessed their involvement in the CD. Many felt that the creation of the coalition had merely confused the voters, and they sought to emphasise the AP's independent identity. Fraga resumed control of the party, and the political resolutions adopted by the party congress reaffirmed the conservative orientation of the AP.
In the early 1980s, Fraga succeeded in rallying the various components of the right around his leadership. He was aided in his efforts to revive the AP by the increasing disintegration of the UCD. In the general elections held in October 1982, the AP gained votes both from previous UCD supporters and from the
far right
Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and Nativism (politics), nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on ...
. It became the major opposition party to the
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( , PSOE ) is a Social democracy, social democratic Updated as required.The PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources:
*
*
*
* List of political parties in Spain, political party ...
, securing 25.4 percent of the popular vote. Whereas the AP's parliamentary representation had dropped to nine seats in 1979, the party allied itself with the small Christian democratic
People's Democratic Party (PDP) and won 106 seats in 1982.
The increased strength of the AP was further evidenced in the municipal and regional elections held in May 1983, when the party drew 26 percent of the vote. A significant portion of the electorate appeared to support the AP's emphasis on
law and order as well as its pro-business policies.
Subsequent political developments belied the party's aspirations to continue increasing its base of support. Prior to the June 1986 elections, the AP joined forces with the PDP and the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world.
The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...
(PL) to form the
People's Coalition (CP), in another attempt to expand its constituency to include the centre of the political spectrum. The coalition called for stronger measures against terrorism, for more
privatisation
Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...
, and for a reduction in public spending and in taxes. The CP failed to increase its share of the vote in the 1986 elections, however, and it soon began to disintegrate.
When regional elections in late 1986 resulted in further losses for the coalition, Fraga resigned as AP chairman, although he retained his parliamentary seat. At the party congress in February 1987,
Antonio Hernández Mancha
Antonio Hernández Mancha (born 1 April 1951 in Guareña, Badajoz) is a former Spanish people, Spanish politician and president of the People's Alliance (Spain), People's Alliance political party from 1987 to 1989. He is married and has two child ...
was chosen to head the AP, declaring that under his leadership the AP would become a "modern right-wing European party". But Hernández Mancha lacked political experience at the national level, and the party continued to decline. When support for the AP plummeted in the municipal and regional elections held in June 1987, it was clear that it would be overtaken as major opposition party by Suárez's
Democratic and Social Centre (CDS).
After the resignation of Manuel Fraga and the successive victories of the
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( , PSOE ) is a Social democracy, social democratic Updated as required.The PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources:
*
*
*
* List of political parties in Spain, political party ...
(PSOE) in the
general election of 1982 and
1986 general election, the Popular Alliance entered a period of deep crisis. Fraga then took the reins and, at the Congress of January 1989, the constituent parties of the CP were folded into a new party, the People's Party. While the AP was the nucleus of the merged party, the PP tried to bill itself as a more moderate party than the AP. Fraga was the first chairman of the party, with Francisco Álvarez Cascos as the secretary general.
Refoundation
Aznar years (1989–2004)

On 4 September 1989, and at the suggestion of Fraga himself,
José María Aznar
José María Alfredo Aznar López (; born 25 February 1953) is a Spanish politician who was the prime minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004. He led the People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP), the dominant centre-right political party in Spai ...
(then premier of the Autonomous Region of
Castile and León
Castile and León is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwestern Spain. Castile and León is the largest autonomous community in Spain by area, covering 94,222 km2. It is, however, sparsely populated, with a pop ...
) was named the party's candidate for
Prime Minister of Spain
The prime minister of Spain, officially president of the Government (), is the head of government of Spain. The prime minister nominates the Spanish government departments, ministers and chairs the Council of Ministers (Spain), Council of Mini ...
at the general elections. In April 1990, Aznar became chairman of the party. Fraga would later be named Founding Chairman of the People's Party.
The PP joined the
European People's Party
The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian democracy, Christian democratic, liberal conservatism, liberal-conservative, and conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other p ...
in 1991.
The PP became the largest party for the first time in 1996, and Aznar became Prime Minister with the support of the
Basque Nationalist Party
The Basque Nationalist Party ( , EAJ; , PNV; , PNB; EAJ-PNV), officially the Basque National Party in English, is a Basque nationalist and regionalist political party. The party is located in the centre of the political spectrum. It has been de ...
, the
Catalan Convergence and Union
Convergence and Union (, CiU; ) was a Catalan nationalist electoral alliance in Catalonia, Spain. It was a federation of two constituent parties, the larger Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC) and its smaller counterpart, the Democratic ...
and the
Canarian Coalition
The Canarian Coalition (, CC or CCa) is a regionalist and Canarian nationalist political party in Spain operating in the Canary Islands. The party's aim is for greater autonomy for the islands but not independence. Its position has been labeled a ...
. In the 2000 elections, the PP gained an
absolute majority
A majority is more than half of a total; however, the term is commonly used with other meanings, as explained in the " Related terms" section below.
It is a subset of a set consisting of more than half of the set's elements. For example, if a gr ...
.
=Foreign policy
=
Known to have a strong
Atlanticist ideology, the People's Party fostered stronger ties to the United States.
Rajoy years (2004–2018)
In August 2003,
Mariano Rajoy
Mariano Rajoy Brey (, ; born 27 March 1955) is a Spanish politician who served as Prime Minister of Spain from 2011 to 2018, when a 2018 vote of no confidence in the government of Mariano Rajoy, vote of no confidence ousted his government. A m ...
was appointed Secretary General by Aznar. Thus, Rajoy became the party's candidate for Prime Minister in the
2004 general election, held three days after the
11 March 2004 Madrid train bombings, and which Rajoy lost by a big margin to
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( , PSOE ) is a Social democracy, social democratic Updated as required.The PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources:
*
*
*
* List of political parties in Spain, political party ...
(PSOE) leader
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero (; born 4 August 1960) is a Spanish politician and member of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE). He was the Prime Minister of Spain being elected for two terms, in the 2004 and 2008 general elections. O ...
.
The PP under
Mariano Rajoy
Mariano Rajoy Brey (, ; born 27 March 1955) is a Spanish politician who served as Prime Minister of Spain from 2011 to 2018, when a 2018 vote of no confidence in the government of Mariano Rajoy, vote of no confidence ousted his government. A m ...
opposed the PSOE government after the PP lost the
general election in 2004, arguing that this victory was influenced by the
Madrid bombings of 11 March 2004. At a national level, its political strategy has followed two main axes, both linked to Spain's delicate regional politics: Firstly, opposing further administrative devolution to Catalonia by means of the newly approved "Estatut" or Statute of Catalonia that lays out the powers of the Catalan regional government. Secondly, opposition to political negotiations with the Basque separatist organisation
ETA
Eta ( ; uppercase , lowercase ; ''ē̂ta'' or ''ita'' ) is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet, representing the close front unrounded vowel, . Originally denoting the voiceless glottal fricative, , in most dialects of Ancient Greek, it ...
.
The People's Party has supported the Association of Victims of Terrorism (
AVT) with respect to the Government's actions concerning ETA's ceasefire, and was able to mobilise hundreds of thousands of people in demonstrations against Government policies that, in its opinion, would result in
political concessions to ETA. Nevertheless, the end of the ceasefire in December 2006 ended prospects for government negotiations with ETA.
The prospect of increased demands for autonomy in the programs of Catalan and Basque parties, and Zapatero's alleged favouring of them, became a focus for the party's campaign for the
March 2008 general election.
Basque President Juan José Ibarretxe's proposal for a unilateral referendum for the solution of the
Basque Conflict
The Basque conflict, also known as the Spain–ETA conflict, was an armed and political conflict from 1959 to 2011 between Spain and the Basque National Liberation Movement, a group of social and political Basque nationalism, Basque organization ...
was another important issue.
The People's Party under Rajoy has an increasingly patriotic, or
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...
, element to it, appealing to the sense of "Spanishness" and making strong use of national symbols such as the
Spanish flag. Prior to the national celebrations of Spanish Heritage Day, Rajoy made a speech asking Spaniards to "privately or publicly" display their pride in their nation and to honor their flag, an action which received some criticism from many political groups of the Congress.
=2008 elections and convention
=
On 9 March 2008, Spain held a general election, with both main parties led by the same candidates who competed in 2004: 154 People's Party MPs were elected, up six on the previous election. However, the failure to close the gap with the ruling Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (which increased its number of MPs by five) provoked a party crisis, in which some internal groups and supportive media questioned the leadership of Rajoy, who was said to be close to resigning.
After an impasse of three days, he decided to stay, and summoned a Party Convention to be held in June 2008 in Valencia. Speculation about alternative candidates erupted in the media, with discussion of the possible candidacies of
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
Mayor
Alberto Ruíz Gallardón and
Madrid autonomous community Premier
Esperanza Aguirre creating a national debate, calls for support and opposition from the media, etc.
In the end neither one stood, with Gallardón explicitly backing Rajoy and Aguirre refusing to comment on the issue. The only politician who explicitly expressed his intention to stand was
Juan Costa, who had been a minister under Aznar, but he was unable to garner the 20% support required to stand in the election because of the support Rajoy had received prior to his nomination. At the convention,
Mariano Rajoy
Mariano Rajoy Brey (, ; born 27 March 1955) is a Spanish politician who served as Prime Minister of Spain from 2011 to 2018, when a 2018 vote of no confidence in the government of Mariano Rajoy, vote of no confidence ousted his government. A m ...
was re-elected chairman with 79% of the vote, and in order to "refresh the negative public image of the party", which had been a major factor in the electoral defeat, its leadership was controversially renewed with young people, replacing a significant number of politicians from the Aznar era.
Among the latter, most resigned of their own accord to make room for the next generation, like the PP Spokesman in the Congress of Deputies
Eduardo Zaplana, replaced by
Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría; and the party Secretary-General
Ángel Acebes, whose office was taken by
María Dolores de Cospedal.
The convention also saw significant reforms to the Party Statutes, including the reform of election to the office of Party Chairperson, which was to be open to more competition; and linking that office to the party candidacy in the general elections, etc.
María San Gil, Chairwoman of the Basque PP, left the party (even resigning from her
Basque Parliament
The Basque Parliament (Basque language, Basque: ''Eusko Legebiltzarra'', Spanish language, Spanish: ''Parlamento Vasco'') is the legislative body of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community of Spain and the elected ...
seat) over disagreements on the party policies towards regional nationalisms in Spain, and particularly over the deletion of a direct reference to the
Basque Nationalist Party
The Basque Nationalist Party ( , EAJ; , PNV; , PNB; EAJ-PNV), officially the Basque National Party in English, is a Basque nationalist and regionalist political party. The party is located in the centre of the political spectrum. It has been de ...
accusing them of being too passive and "contemptuous" regarding the armed Basque group ETA. Most PP members rallied behind San Gil at first, but when it became clear that her decision was final the national leadership called a regional party election, in which
Antonio Basagoiti was chosen as the new Basque PP leader.
The PP won a clear victory in the
2011 general elections, ousting the PSOE from government. With 44.62% of the votes, the conservatives won 186 seats in the ''Congreso de los Diputados'', the biggest victory they have ever had. On the other hand, the centre-left PSOE suffered a huge defeat, losing 59 MPs. The PP, under Mariano Rajoy's leadership, returned to power after 7 years of opposition.
In May 2018, the
Audiencia Nacional declared the PP as guilty part "on a lucrative basis" in the
Gürtel corruption scheme, understanding the profited from the corruption scheme "to the detriment of the State's interests". This led to a
motion of no confidence
A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...
to the prime minister Mariano Rajoy, led by socialist leader
Pedro Sánchez
Pedro Sánchez Pérez-Castejón (; born 29 February 1972) is a Spanish politician who has served as Prime Minister of Spain since 2018. He has also been Secretary-General of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) since July 2017, having p ...
, which eventually succeeded, thus forcing Rajoy to quit his position, and ultimately resign as the party's leader. His substitute
would be determined in July 2018.
Leadership of Casado (2018–2022)
Pablo Casado's victory in the
July 2018 PP leadership election was considered a party swing towards the right.
Polls indicated a continual decline in support for the PP in the lead-up to the
April 2019 general election. Ultimately, the party achieved the worst result in its history, winning just 16.7% of the national vote – a decline of almost 16% from the 2016 election – and losing over half its seats. Though becoming only the second largest party in the Congress of Deputies, it held almost half as many seats as first placed PSOE, and was less than a single percentage point and just nine seats ahead of third placed Ciudadanos. Casado refused to resign following the poor result, and proposed a sudden U-turn of the party back into the moderate centre-right under pressure from party regional leaders one month ahead of the
regional
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...
and
local elections
Local may refer to:
Geography and transportation
* Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand
* Local, Missouri, a community in the United States
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...
.
The party enjoyed a partial revival in
2019 European elections, winning 20.15% of votes. The party increased its support in the
November 2019 election, scoring 20.82% of votes and electing 89 deputies and 83 senators.
= 2022 internal organisational crisis
=
After a few months of confrontation between the president of the
Community of Madrid
The Community of Madrid (; ) is one of the seventeen autonomous communities and 50 provinces of Spain, provinces of Spain. It is located at the heart of the Iberian Peninsula and Meseta Central, Central Plateau (); its capital and largest munici ...
,
Isabel Díaz Ayuso, and the leadership of the national branch of the party, on 16 February 2022, information appeared about an alleged payment (in the form of a commission) of Díaz Ayuso's brother for health material and also about alleged
spying
Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or Confidentiality, confidential information (Intelligence (information), intelligence). A person who commits espionage on ...
on the president's family by the party leadership through the
City Council of Madrid
The City Council of Madrid () is the top-tier administrative and governing body of Madrid, the capital and biggest city of Spain.
The city council is composed by three bodies: the mayor, who leads the city council and the executive branch of it; ...
. The president herself accused in an appearance the following day the national leadership of the PP of wanting to destroy her politically. That afternoon, the secretary general,
Teodoro García Egea, appeared to deny all the information related to the attempt to spy on the president's entourage; in this appearance, Egea informed of the opening of an informative file on the actions of the president of Madrid, which was closed the following day, considering the documentation provided valid. A few hours later, that same day,
Ángel Carromero, a trusted person of the Mayor of Madrid,
José Luis Martínez-Almeida, resigned after the release of some audios in which one of the detectives claimed to have been contacted from the Empresa Municipal de la Vivienda y Suelo (Municipal Housing and Land Company).
The following day, President Pablo Casado stated on the
Cadena COPE
COPE, an acronym for Cadena de Ondas Populares Españolas ("People's Radiowaves of Spain Network") formerly called Radio Popular, is a Spanish language radio station. It is the second most listened to in Spain's generalist radio. Owned by the S ...
radio channel that Díaz Ayuso should provide all the necessary documentation to clear doubts about his honorability, questioning at the same time his honesty by stating whether "it is logical to award a commission to your brother in April 2020, when 700 people were dying in Spain due to the pandemic".
This led to a schism in the leadership of the PP, in which regional leaders and popular leaders demanded political responsibilities and a change of leadership and responsibilities in the apparatus. On 22 February there was a cascade of resignations of senior party officials and the demand by the majority of territorial barons and the Popular Parliamentary Group for the holding of an Extraordinary Congress, in addition to the request for the resignation of the Secretary General, which took place that same day. Casado finally agreed to convene the National Board of Directors on 1 March to set in motion an Extraordinary Congress of the PP. Casado was subsequently replaced as leader by
Alberto Núñez Feijóo
Alberto Núñez Feijóo (, ; born 10 September 1961) is a Spanish politician who serves as Member of the Congress of Deputies and as president of the People's Party (Spain), People's Party. He served as the president of the Regional Government o ...
, the president of
Galicia.
Alberto Núñez Feijóo's leadership (2022–present)
After becoming the party's leader, Feijóo designated
Cuca Gamarra, the PP's spokesperson in the
Congress of Deputies
The Congress of Deputies () is the lower house of the , Spain's legislative branch, the upper house being the Senate of Spain, Senate. The Congress meets in the Palacio de las Cortes, Madrid, Palace of the Parliament () in Madrid.
Congress has ...
, as the new Secretary General. After the PP took several regions—including
Aragon
Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...
, the
Balearic Islands
The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a Provinces of Spain, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain, ...
, and
Valencia
Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
—from the PSOE in Spain's 2023
regional
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...
and
local
Local may refer to:
Geography and transportation
* Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand
* Local, Missouri, a community in the United States
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...
elections, Sánchez called for a
snap general election. The conservative party gained forty-eight seats in Congress and an absolute majority in the Senate, winning the elections.
The PP failed to secure a parliamentary majority
with its allies,
Canarian Coalition
The Canarian Coalition (, CC or CCa) is a regionalist and Canarian nationalist political party in Spain operating in the Canary Islands. The party's aim is for greater autonomy for the islands but not independence. Its position has been labeled a ...
,
Navarrese People's Union
The Navarrese People's Union (; ), abbreviated to UPN, is a regional Conservatism, conservative political party in Navarre, Spain. Until 2008, it was a fraternal party of the People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP), acting as the latter's Nava ...
(UPN), and VOX; however,
King of Spain
The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country.
The Spanish ...
Felipe VI
Felipe VI (; Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Grecia; born 30 January 1968) is King of Spain. In accordance with the Spanish Constitution, as monarch, he is head of state and commander-in-chief of the Spanish Armed For ...
requested that Feijóo try to form a government.
Ideology
Once described as the main
liberal-conservative
Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...
party of Spain, political scientists Vít Hlousek and Lubomír Kopeček have observed that under the leadership of José María Aznar the party evolved into a
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
party with elements of
Christian democracy
Christian democracy is an ideology inspired by Christian social teaching to respond to the challenges of contemporary society and politics.
Christian democracy has drawn mainly from Catholic social teaching and neo-scholasticism, as well ...
and
economic liberalism
Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic liberalism ...
.
[Annesley, 2005, p. 260.][Hloušek y Kopeček, 2010, p. 159. «From its original emphasis on a 'united and Catholic Spain', in the 1980s and 1990s it gradually evolved under the leadership of José Maria Aznar into a pragmatically oriented conservative formation, with Christian democratic and, even more strongly, economically liberal elements»] It was described as
Christian humanist in 2003
and
conservative liberal in 1998 and 2010.
On the other hand, sociologist
Vicenç Navarro
Vicente Navarro (born 1937 in Gironella, Spain) is a Spanish sociologist and political scientist. He has been a Professor of Health and Public Policy at Johns Hopkins University, US, for over 30 years. He is also Emeritus, emeritus professor in p ...
considered the PP a
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
-
neoliberal
Neoliberalism is a political and economic ideology that advocates for free-market capitalism, which became dominant in policy-making from the late 20th century onward. The term has multiple, competing definitions, and is most often used pej ...
coalition with a
neoliberal
Neoliberalism is a political and economic ideology that advocates for free-market capitalism, which became dominant in policy-making from the late 20th century onward. The term has multiple, competing definitions, and is most often used pej ...
economic policy.
The party supports the regional structure in
autonomous communities
The autonomous communities () are the first-level administrative divisions of Spain, created in accordance with the Spanish Constitution of 1978, with the aim of guaranteeing limited autonomy to the nationalities and regions that make up Spa ...
enshrined in the
Constitution of 1978, as well as the
constitutional monarchy
Constitutional monarchy, also known as limited monarchy, parliamentary monarchy or democratic monarchy, is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in making decisions. ...
.
When Spain first
legalised same-sex marriage in 2005, the party was opposed to the same-sex marriage law. It did, however, support marriage-like
civil union
A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, primarily created to provide legal recognition for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage, with ch ...
s for same-sex couples. The party organised demonstrations against the same-sex marriage law. After the law was deemed constitutional in 2012, the PP government announced that it would no longer seek the repeal of same-sex marriage. While the party has a strong socially conservative faction, some politicians from the People's Party now support same-sex marriage. Some PP regional governments have introduced legislation against discrimination based on
sexual orientation
Sexual orientation is an enduring personal pattern of romantic attraction or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. Patterns ar ...
and
gender identity
Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent and consistent with the in ...
.
Illegal financing
In early 2009, a scandal involving several senior members of the party came to the public's attention. The
Gürtel case
The Gürtel case was a major political corruption scandal in Spain that implicated hundreds of officers of the People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP), Spain's major Conservatism, conservative party, some of whom were subsequently forced to ...
resulted in the resignation of the party's treasurer
Luis Bárcenas in 2009. The case against him was dropped in July 2011 but reopened the following year.
The leader of the party in the Valencia region,
Francisco Camps, stepped down in July 2011 because of a pending trial. He was accused of having received gifts in exchange for public contracts, but was found to be not guilty.
Bárcenas affair
In January 2013, the judges' investigation discovered an account in
Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
controlled by
Luis Bárcenas with €22 million euros and another €4.5 million in the United States. Allegations appeared in the media regarding the existence of supposed illegal funds of the PP, used for the undercover monthly payments to VIPs in the party from 1989 to 2009, including the former government presidents,
Mariano Rajoy
Mariano Rajoy Brey (, ; born 27 March 1955) is a Spanish politician who served as Prime Minister of Spain from 2011 to 2018, when a 2018 vote of no confidence in the government of Mariano Rajoy, vote of no confidence ousted his government. A m ...
and
José María Aznar
José María Alfredo Aznar López (; born 25 February 1953) is a Spanish politician who was the prime minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004. He led the People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP), the dominant centre-right political party in Spai ...
. The existence of such illicit funding has been denied by the PP.
Lezo Case
Judge Eloy Velasco instructing the Lezo Case in the
Spanish National Court is investigating former President of the
Community of Madrid
The Community of Madrid (; ) is one of the seventeen autonomous communities and 50 provinces of Spain, provinces of Spain. It is located at the heart of the Iberian Peninsula and Meseta Central, Central Plateau (); its capital and largest munici ...
,
Ignacio González, former Work Minister,
Eduardo Zaplana, Vice-councilor of the presidency of the Community of Madrid and implicated in
Gürtel Case
The Gürtel case was a major political corruption scandal in Spain that implicated hundreds of officers of the People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP), Spain's major Conservatism, conservative party, some of whom were subsequently forced to ...
Alberto López Viejo, businessmen
Juan Miguel Villar Mir (OHL) and
PricewaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers, also known as PwC, is a multinational professional services network based in London, United Kingdom.
It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is one of the Big Four accounting firms, alon ...
among others for embezzlement of public funds to presumably finance People's Party (PP) campaigns in the Community of Madrid.
Organization
Leadership
Regional leaders
*
Andalusia
Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...
:
Juan Manuel Moreno (since 2014)
*
Aragon
Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...
:
Jorge Azcón
Jorge Antonio Azcón Navarro (born 21 November 1973) is a Spanish politician, serving as the President of the Government of Aragon since 2023. He is the president of the People's Party of Aragon. He was also a city councillor (2000–2007; 2011� ...
(since 2022)
*
Asturias
Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain.
It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...
:
Álvaro Queipo (since 2023)
*
Balearic Islands
The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a Provinces of Spain, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain, ...
:
Marga Prohens (since 2021)
*
Basque Country:
Carlos Iturgaiz (since 2020)
*
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...
:
Manuel Domínguez (since 2022)
*
Cantabria
Cantabria (, ; ) is an autonomous community and Provinces of Spain, province in northern Spain with Santander, Cantabria, Santander as its capital city. It is called a , a Nationalities and regions of Spain, historic community, in its current ...
:
María José Sáenz (since 2017)
*
Castile and León
Castile and León is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwestern Spain. Castile and León is the largest autonomous community in Spain by area, covering 94,222 km2. It is, however, sparsely populated, with a pop ...
:
Alfonso Fernández Mañueco (since 2017)
*
Castilla-La Mancha:
Francisco Núñez (since 2018)
*
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...
:
Alejandro Fernández
Alejandro Fernández Abarca (; born 24 April 1971) is a Mexican singer. Born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, he is the son of the Mexican singer Vicente Fernández. Nicknamed as " El Potrillo" by the media and his fans, he has sold over 20 million rec ...
(since 2018)
*
Ceuta
Ceuta (, , ; ) is an Autonomous communities of Spain#Autonomous cities, autonomous city of Spain on the North African coast. Bordered by Morocco, it lies along the boundary between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta is one of th ...
:
Juan Jesús Vivas
Juan Jesús Vivas Lara (born 27 February 1953) is a Spanish politician who is the current Mayor-President of the autonomous city of Ceuta, since 8 February 2001. He is a member of the People's Party (PP).
Biography
Born in Ceuta in 1953, Jua ...
(since 2009)
*
Community of Madrid
The Community of Madrid (; ) is one of the seventeen autonomous communities and 50 provinces of Spain, provinces of Spain. It is located at the heart of the Iberian Peninsula and Meseta Central, Central Plateau (); its capital and largest munici ...
:
Isabel Díaz Ayuso (since 2022)
*
Extremadura
Extremadura ( ; ; ; ; Fala language, Fala: ''Extremaúra'') is a landlocked autonomous communities in Spain, autonomous community of Spain. Its capital city is Mérida, Spain, Mérida, and its largest city is Badajoz. Located in the central- ...
:
María Guardiola (since 2022)
*
Galicia:
Alfonso Rueda
Alfonso Rueda Valenzuela (born 8 July 1968) is a Spanish People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP) politician. Elected to the Parliament of Galicia 2009 Galician regional election, in 2009, he succeeded Alberto Núñez Feijóo as president of ...
(since 2022)
*
La Rioja
La Rioja () is an autonomous communities in Spain, autonomous community and provinces of Spain, province in Spain, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Its capital is Logroño. Other List of municipalities in La Rioja, cities and towns in the ...
:
Gonzalo Capellán (since 2022)
*
Melilla
Melilla (, ; ) is an autonomous city of Spain on the North African coast. It lies on the eastern side of the Cape Three Forks, bordering Morocco and facing the Mediterranean Sea. It has an area of . It was part of the Province of Málaga un ...
:
Juan José Imbroda (since 2000)
*
Murcia
Murcia ( , , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the Capital (political), capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the Ranked lists of Spanish municipalities#By population, seventh largest city i ...
:
Fernando López (since 2017)
*
Navarre
Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...
:
Javier García (since 2022)
*
Valencian Community
The Valencian Community is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wit ...
:
Carlos Mazón
Carlos Arturo Mazón Guixot (born 8 April 1974) is a Spanish People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP) politician. He was elected president of the Provincial deputation (Spain), Provincial Deputation of the Province of Alicante in 2019 and has ...
(since 2021)
Electoral performance
Cortes Generales
European Parliament
See also
*
List of political parties in Spain
This article serves as a list of the political parties in Spain.
Spain has a multi-party system at both the national and regional level, the major parties nationwide being the People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP) and the Spanish Socialist ...
*
Politics of Spain
The politics of Spain takes place under the framework established by the Constitution of 1978. Spain is established as a social and democratic sovereign country wherein the national sovereignty is vested in the people, from which the power ...
Notes
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
{{Authority control
1989 establishments in Spain
Catholic political parties
Christian democratic parties in Europe
Conservative parties in Spain
Member parties of the European People's Party
Monarchist parties in Spain
Political parties established in 1989
Right-wing parties in Europe