Latest voter survey sees Socialists put on five points compared to April poll

Support for Spain’s Socialist Party (PSOE) is at 34.2% among voters, according to the latest opinion poll carried out by Spain’s CIS public research institute. That is more than five percentage points up on the share of the vote that the party led by caretaker Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez secured at the inconclusive April 28 general election.

The CIS poll shows that the PSOE currently counts on twice as much support as the conservative Popular Party (PP), which scored 17.1% in the survey. The PP, which was ousted from power last summer in a vote of no-confidence against then-Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, scored its worst electoral result ever at the April polls, with just 16.7% of the vote.

This latest survey was carried out before negotiations between Spain’s main political parties failed to produce a governing deal, meaning that the country is now headed to another general election, scheduled for November 10, the fourth in as many years. At the April polls, the PSOE took the most votes, but fell short of a majority, and was expected to reach a deal with left-wing anti-austerity group Unidas Podemos. Despite months of talks, however, Sánchez and Unidas Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias were unable to hammer out an agreement.

Center-right party Ciudadanos (Citizens) comes out worst in the latest CIS poll compared to how it fared at the April vote. Support for the group led by Albert Rivera has dropped by three points compared to the last general election, at which it won 15.86% of the vote.

Unidas Podemos, meanwhile, which took 14.3% of the vote in April, would now take 15.5%, according to this CIS survey.

The survey was also carried out before confirmation that Podemos co-founder Iñigo Errejón would be running at the November 10 election with new party Más País. Errejón left Podemos after disagreements with co-founder Iglesias, and ran in the Madrid regional elections with the party Más Madrid. The appearance of this new group could, some commentators argue, further splinter the support for the left at the November poll.

The CIS poll also reveals that the percentage of people who say that politics and politicians are among the country’s biggest problems has gone up by seven points in just two months, to 45.3% – the worst figure since records began in 1985.

English version by Simon Hunter.