The undisputed leader

Amid a climate of rare unanimity, prompted by the resounding victory at the November 2011 elections, delegates at the annual Popular Party (PP) conference re-elected Mariano Rajoy as their leader on Saturday. Speaking after his win, Rajoy described the PP as "speaking with the same voice to every corner of Spain," and, in his only reference to the ongoing corruption scandals plaguing the party, called the PP "a model of behavior."

The party has so far limited itself to just suspending members directly accused of involvement in corruption. The conference also produced repeated calls for teaching in Castilian to be protected — a measure that would provide a "balance" with other regional languages, notably Basque and Catalan, along with support for reforms to the labor market and vague promises to protect health and education.

Nevertheless, there are serious divisions within the party over key issues. Rajoy is very much a self-made leader, having battled long and hard to hold on to his position against those who questioned his stewardship after he lost two general elections to the Socialist Party. The PP's honorary president, José María Aznar, who represents hardliners, took advantage of the occasion to appeal to Rajoy's "patriotism" and called on him to press ahead with labor market reforms, as well as maintain a firm hand in dealing with terrorist group ETA and negotiations toward a peaceful settlement over the fight for Basque independence. Rajoy has chosen no fewer than five members of the PP from the Basque Country to sit on his Cabinet; all supporters of Antonio Basagoiti, the head of the PP's Basque wing. Basagoiti spoke at the conference, and called for unanimity with the Socialists and the Basque Nationalist Party in dealing with the pro-independence Basque radical left. The conference also managed to avoid any public dispute over issues such as whether the PP should include some reference to its support for the Roman Catholic Church in its name, as well as its stance over same-sex marriage.

María Dolores de Cospedal will remain the party's secretary general, and will also continue in the post of regional government premier of Castilla-La Mancha. Javier Arenas will now be deputy secretary for local and regional government, and is set to become head of the regional government of Andalusia after the March elections there. Rajoy has appointed figures close to Madrid regional premier Esperanza Aguirre in the capital's regional administration, including Manuel Cobo, who crossed swords with her last year.

The conference was held in Seville to highlight Arenas' candidacy for the regional government of Andalusia, which, if he wins, as the polls are suggesting, will give the PP unprecedented regional and national control.