ADDS CONTEXT, RAJOY'S REMARK BEFORE VOTE
By Alyssa McMurtry
OVIEDO, Spain (AA) – The government of Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy was toppled on Friday after parliament passed a motion of no-confidence.
Spain’s Socialist Party triggered the vote after a court sentenced several former high-ranking members of Rajoy’s Popular Party to prison on corruption charges, fined the party for benefiting from corruption, and noted that the party had a secret bank account.
Pedro Sanchez, leader of the Socialist Party, is set to be Spain’s new prime minister. He has secured the backing of six other parties, including the far-left Unidos Podemos party and Basque and Catalan nationalist parties.
In parliament, the vote on Rajoy was 180-169, with 1 abstention.
Elected in 2011, in the midst of a deep financial crisis, Rajoy saw the country through a shaky economic recovery. His rule also witnessed the historic rise of two new political parties and the Catalan government’s botched independence attempt.
Today, Spain’s unemployment rate is 16.7 percent, compared to nearly 23 percent when Rajoy was elected, according to Spain’s National Institute for Statistics.
“It’s been an honor to be PM of Spain. It’s an honor to leave Spain better than I found it,” said Rajoy before the vote that ousted him.
Sanchez’s governance in the highly fractured Spanish parliament will not be easy. The Socialists hold 85 seats in the 350-seat parliament, and the other parties who backed Sanchez’s motion said their vote reflected a “no” to Rajoy rather than a “yes” to Sanchez.
Sanchez has promised to maintain the budget that was put forward by Rajoy last month. He also outlined his roadmap in parliament, saying he will stabilize the country, address social issues, and then call elections.
Since December 2015, Spain has held two national elections. The last, in 2016, resulted in more than 10 months of political deadlock before Rajoy managed to form a minority government.
