VOX Espana on Facebook, 16 May 2024
The most recent poll in Spain, published by the local daily El País, shows that the national conservative VOX has surged in popularity since the 2023 general elections, while both big establishment blocs—the ruling Socialist Party (PSOE) and the center-right Partido Popular (PP)—are steadily losing support.
VOX is a member of the Patriots for Europe (PfE) group and the third-largest party in the Spanish parliament after receiving 12% during the last election, in July 2023. According to the latest surveys, the nationalist party has been improving its results for several months in a row, and is now polling at 14.2% for the first time since the election.
Furthermore, VOX’s support is only expected to grow further, as the party’s popularity is primarily driven by the younger generations: it’s the most popular party among voters aged 18 to 34. Among 18 to 24-year-olds, in particular, it stands at 27.4%—far above the socialists’ 15% and the center-right’s 11%.
“VOX continues to grow and consolidate its position as the leading force among young people,” the party wrote on X. “The future is ours.”
At the same time, the establishment is having a tough time keeping its existing voters, especially on the Left. Plagued with one corruption scandal after another, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s PSOE (S&D) is polling only at 28.4%, or more than three points less compared to its result at the last election. It’s the number one pick only among voters older than 55.
The PP is declining, although losing only half a point since the election and still leading the polls with 32.6%. The center-right party’s primary demographic is even older than the socialists, beating the PSOE only among those older than 65.
Moreover, the study also shows that PP lost 9% of its 2023 voters to VOX, a trend that could reorganize Spain’s political landscape in a few years if it continues at the current pace.
However, the biggest decrease was measured in the popularity of the far-left Sumar (The Left/Greens), the socialists’ junior coalition partner, which has lost over half of its voters since the 2023 elections and dropped from 12.4% to only 5.9%, even though it began gradually rising lately.
Podemos, which split from Sumar after the elections is polling at 3.4%, while the other conservative SALF (ECR) has dropped below the 3% parliamentary threshold with just 2.5%.
VOX’s surge in the polls could also be supported by the party’s growing international recognition. Last year, VOX leader Santiago Abascal was elected as the president of the Patriots.eu, the political party behind the Patriots group in the EU Parliament. Later this week, Abascal will host other Patriot leaders—including France’s Marine Le Pen (RN) and Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán (Fidesz)—at a major rally in Madrid, dedicated to ‘making Europe great again.’
https://europeanconservative.com/articles/news/spain-vox-now-most-popular-party-for-young-voters/