The image to be delivered this Saturday in Valencia will be impressive. At least, if one takes into account the seismic movements of the party while Pedro Sánchez has held the reins over the last five years. The 40th Congress of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) opens this Friday and will last all weekend. Two former Socialist prime ministers who are at opposite ends of the party's ideological band and who have played very different roles recently will share the stage. On the one hand, Felipe González, who has tried to destabilize the current Spanish government with statements against Unidas Podemos and the pro-independence parties whose support it depends on. On the other, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, who has supported the Moncloa government palace in decisions which have not always been understood by the grassroots or the regional barons, such as the formation of the coalition government itself or the granting of pardons to the Catalan political prisoners. But they will both be there this Saturday, together, with their nuances but giving an image of unity, of pacification.
It will be a PSOE congress held in the Soviet style - one of acclamation, without dissent. Paradoxically, the figure who managed to pacify the party was the Valencian José Luis Ábalos, until recently its organizational secretary, who was purged from his role in both party and government on July 10th after fulfilling his mission. Checkmate in the struggle against the party's critical wing was achieved in June, when Pedro Sánchez managed to undermine the queen: Susana Díaz. She who had once fought for control of party HQ, ended up defeated in Andalusian primary elections orchestrated by the PSOE general secretary himself. Now the former Andalusian baron is safely resting in the Senate, the quintessential cemetery of elephants. Thus, the conclave of Valencia will serve to close ranks with a consolidated leader. No one imagines a change of general secretary anymore.
At policy level, the PSOE's line has also changed substantially. Especially in its territorial aspects. The last party congress took place in June 2017, when the party was in opposition and did not envisage reaching the Moncloa in the short term. Then, the Socialists' manifesto proposed a "federal constitutional reform, which maintains the unity of the state, perfecting its plurinational character." The approved final text stated that "it is a question of giving viable answers to the current needs, challenges and problems and to aspirations for the profound improvement to the political life of the whole country (...) with special mention to those territories that are expressing their own identity and will to self-government with most intensity, as is the case of Catalonia". Indeed, the Catalan question was addressed very broadly, to contrast with the attitude of the then-government of Mariano Rajoy. The word "Catalonia" appeared in the approved resolutions as many as six times.
From opposition to government: Pedro Sánchez has made the terms “plurinational” and "federal reform" disappear as the party goes into its 40th congress
Now, four years later, the PSOE is in government, Sánchez has more grey hairs on his head and the programme is much more diluted. The word "Catalonia" only appears once in 304 pages of agenda. The terms "plurinational" and "federal constitutional reform" have entirely disappeared. The paragraphs devoted to the issue have been substantially reduced and there is no specific proposal. Faced with the "threat of neocentralism", the party claims that "the modern multilevel Spain is what offers democratic paths of dialogue and agreement within the framework of the law to give solutions to situations such as that of Catalonia, by means of greater depth to the state of autonomour communities".
And it adds in abstract terms: "The improvement of social coexistence within Catalan society and a better fit of Catalan self-government into the rest of Spain are first-priority goals for the Socialists. The government of Spain has resolutely and courageously promoted the agenda of the re-encounter to foster dialogue, understanding and pact within the law, as the only viable way to move forward with hope of success in these purposes." The party's 2013 declaration of Granada ("A new territorial pact: the Spain of everyone") is a bridge too far.
There will be other debates, such as the tax rivalry between autonomous communities, which will be debated at the initiative of the Catalan Socialists (PSC), and the decentralization of institutions beyond Madrid. In the debate for Valencia, there are, as always, amendments from the much more ambitious party grassroots. As is tradition, the party's youth wing has put the issue of the monarchy on the table. They demand the commission of inquiry that the PSOE itself vetoed at the level of Congress's procedural Bureau, avoiding a debate. As is also tradition, the numbers give it very little chance of success. A total of 10,500 amendments to the party programme have been tabled, to be debated by the 1,082 delegates.
Agenda 2023
The 40th Congress of the PSOE seeks the same as the cabinet reshuffle of July 10th: strengthen the party and grease the machinery for 2023. A re-armament like the one attempted by Pablo Casado in the PP two weeks ago, also in Valencia. New government and new leadership. Just yesterday, Pedro Sánchez guaranteed that the government would serve out the remaining two years of the legislature, and the general elections will probably overlap with the regional elections - including that of Madrid - and the municipal elections. Some figures will gain weighting within the party, such as Adriana Lastra and Santos Cerdán, and others will be directly removed, as happened with José Luis Ábalos. In terms of the PSC, the departure from the federal executive of Núria Marín, mayor of L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, is expected. Socialist sources see her as being compromised, with a case of alleged corruption that doesn’t look good. Her place could be taken by transport minister Raquel Sánchez, one of the new assets of Spanish and Catalan socialism, or Eva Granados, who has just landed in Madrid to be the PSOE's spokesperson in the Senate.
Redondo and the CIS
All this in the same week that the also-purged Iván Redondo has decided to make the final transition from the shadows to the spotlight. The biography of Pedro Sánchez's former guru has been published, penned by journalist and socialist activist Toni Bolaño, in which he gives his version of events and talks about the people who got in the way. And he has also given an interview in which he predicts that Yolanda Díaz may be the next prime minister of Spain. Today also saw the release of the CIS opinion poll, which again gives a better rating to the second deputy PM Díaz (4.8 out of 10) than to Pedro Sánchez (4.4).