Socialists and United Left put forward coalition agreement in Andalusia

The Socialist Party and United Left (IU) are on the verge of agreeing a leftist coalition pact to govern in the Andalusia region. However, for now they are trying to avoid putting it into words until it can be agreed to by IU members in an internal referendum due to be held on April 24.

The regional secretaries of the Socialist Party and Spanish Communist Party (part of the IU grouping), Susana Díaz and José Luis Centella, on Wednesday announced a manifesto agreement that would give rise to a “coherent and strong” government in the region for the next four years.

The Andalusia Popular Party, led by Javier Arenas, received the most votes in regional elections held on March 25, but failed to secure an absolute majority. The pact with the IU will allow the Socialists, who have ruled in Andalusia for the last 28 years, to maintain their grip on power and ensure a leftist bastion in a Spanish political landscape otherwise dominated by the center-right PP.

Neither secretary would say if the accord would take the form of a governing coalition or legislative pact. They also refused to specify its main points, though the principal elements are known to be employment, social policy, the change of the productive model, the defense of the region, the defense of Andalusian policies in the EU and the need to strengthen the “civil ethic.”