MADRID – On Monday, August 21, and Tuesday, August 22, King Felipe VI will meet with representatives of political parties for a series of consultations regarding the formation of a new government.
Today and tomorrow (Tuesday), King Felipe VI will meet with representatives of political parties for a series of consultations related to the swearing-in. According to the Royal House’s schedule, the meetings will start with the smallest political parties following the 23-J elections. Consequently, the turn of the largest ones will be at the end. This means that Pedro Sánchez (PSOE) and Alberto Núñez-Feijóo (Partido Popular) will be the last two to be consulted.
These protocol meetings are held to determine whether or not a candidate for the presidency of the government can be nominated. According to Article 99 of the Constitution, it is the responsibility of the head of state to propose a candidate for the swearing-in to the Cortes (Spanish parliament).
First consultations
On the first day, the consultations will begin with three parties that each secured a single seat in the Congress: Unión del Pueblo Navarro (UPN), Coalición Canaria (CCA), and Partido Nacionalista Vasco (EAJ-PNV). The consultation day will conclude with Sumar, which secured 31 seats in the previous elections.
On the second day, during this round of consultations for the swearing-in, the king will meet with the three parties with the most representation. The day will start at 9.00 am with Vox, followed by PSOE at noon and PP at 4.00 pm. They secured 33, 121, and 137 seats, respectively, in the 23-J elections.
Nationalist Parties Are Not on the Schedule
The new president of the Congress, Francina Armengol, has relayed the list of the seven participating parties. However, nationalist or regionalist parties are not on the schedule for this round of consultations. BNG, EH Bildu, Junts, and Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya will not meet with the king, even though they secured parliamentary representation, with 1, 6, 7, and 7 seats, respectively. As reported by Europa Press, this is not the first time this has occurred. ERC already declined to participate in the consultation round with Felipe VI in 2019. Previously, both ERC and Bildu refused to meet with the king following the general elections of December 2015 and June 2016.
MONDAY, AUGUST 21:
9:00h Javier Esparza, Unión del Pueblo Navarro
12:00h Cristina Valido, Coalición Canaria
16:00h Aitor Esteban, Euzko Alderdi Jeltzalea-Partido Nacionalista Vasco (EAJ-PNV)
17:30h Yolanda Díaz, Sumar
TUESDAY, AUGUST 22:
9:00h Santiago Abascal, VOX
12:00h Pedro Sánchez, PSOE
16:00h Alberto Núñez Feijóo, PP
Also read: PP wins Spanish elections, yet right wing falls short of majority
