IL wants “Sanchez, Antonio Costa from Spain, to step down”

The IL president hopes “Pedro Sánchez, António Costa of Spain, will leave power” in Spain’s elections this Sunday by asking two Iberian socialist parties whether they will allow other political forces to govern “without resorting to extremism”.

Speaking to reporters in Costa da Caparica during an initiative integrated into the Liberal Routes taking place this weekend in the district of Setúbal, Rui Rocha was asked about the legislative elections that will take place this Sunday in Spain and how these results can be seen in Portugal.

“Firstly, I may wish that Pedro Sanchez, Antonio Costa of Spain, leaves power today and that another solution be found,” he said, pointing to “several negative consequences of the socialist administration” of recent years in this country.

According to the liberal leader, “Spain also faces many economic problems that are linked to this leftist ideological bias, which has also conditioned the economic and social evolution” of the Spanish country.

“From the point of view of Portugal, I think it is also very interesting, because a political decision can be discussed, which may also be of some interest to Portugal, namely if there is a victory for the PP, which is mainly indicated by the polls, how the PSOE positions itself in relation to this victory,” he asked.

The question that arises, according to Rui Rocha, is whether the Spanish Socialist Party will “let the PP govern without resorting to extremism, or try to push the PP”.

“Here in Portugal, it is also necessary to ask a question. The Liberal Initiative took a stand very early […] we refuse any understanding with extremist political forces,” he said.

For the leader of the IL, it is necessary to ask the PS “if one day there is a decision in which, for example, the Liberal Initiative and the SDP are involved, whether it will allow this decision to exist or not.”

“How is the PSOE and how does the PS position itself when there is the possibility of being managed, in this case in Portugal, by the Liberal Initiative and the PSD or in Spain by the PP,” he said.

The possibility of the NP joining the extreme right or not, Rui Rocha does not comment, because “it is obvious that the NP, if it wins the elections, will do what it wants.”

“The position of the liberal initiative regarding this type of agreement is very clear. Therefore, it is important for me to know how the position of the Socialist Party, whether in Spain or in Portugal, if there is a possibility of realizing an alternative, ”he insisted.

Spain will vote this Sunday in legislative elections, with the latest polls showing a victory for the right and a defeat for the current socialist prime minister, Pedro Sanchez.

This is the 16th general election in Spain since the end of the dictatorship, in 1977, and 37,469,142 voters are called to vote to elect 350 deputies and 208 senators.

Elections were scheduled for December, at the end of the legislature, but were pushed back by Sánchez after the defeat of the left in the May 28 municipal and regional elections.

Four parties have submitted national lists and intend to enter the government: the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), the People’s Party (PP, right), Somar (far left) and VOX (far right).