Protests against austerity propelled Podemos to the forefront of Spanish politics. The fate of Syriza in Greece shows some of the problems ahead As Greece heads yet again for elections, with Syriza’s leader, Alexis Tsipras, facing a major test now that he has accepted the stringent economic terms laid out by creditors, the fallout will be watched closely in another country in Europe’s south where traditional parties have come under the assault of new grassroots movements: Spain. Indications are that the rise of Podemos, the “We can” movement that grew out of Spanish anti-austerity street protests, has slowed, if not stalled. This summer, opinion polls placed Podemos third, with around 15% of votes, behind the ruling rightwing People’s party (28%) and the PSOE socialist party (24%). That is a far cry from the peak reached by Podemos at the start of the year, when it seemed set to overtake the socialists, just one year after its fiery, anti-establishment agenda had first burst on to the scene. Continue reading...
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