Never in Spanish politics a party gained so much proeminence in such a short time as Podemos. The party was formed in the aftermath of the 15-M movement; a grassroots group responsible for hundreds of demonstrations across Spain to protest against austerity and corruption. Only 20 days after becoming a political party Podemos got 100k members and received 8% of the votes in the European elections of 2014. With an energized base, Podemos didn’t stop growing and was also able to forge regional and national electoral alliances that gave the canditates they supported the mayoralties of Madrid and Barcelona. One year later the left-wing populist party stormed into national parliament receiving 21% of the votes. Podemos founders were able to masterfully transform poltical anger and discontent against the political class in votes. They managed to capture the vote of citizens that felt betrayed by politicians and energize a generation that was disconnected from politics. The sucess of the party of Iglesias, made many in PSOE afraid they were going to lose their position as the main left-wing party something that actually happened for a period of time according to opinion polls. But only 2 months away from next Spanish general election, the scenario changed completely; Podemos is tanking in polls disputing the third place with another political newcomer – VOX. It’s difficult to explain in detail why Podemos is failing but i will try to sum up in 4 big reasons:



Catalunya – In periods of polarization, parties that try to position themselves in a third way tend to be swallowed by the poles. Podemos policy for Catalunya was even more ambiguous than PSOE. The party positioned against the Independence of Catalunya but they were prepared to allow a referendum to happen. However reasonable this policy might be, it didn’t sound good in the ears of Podemos voters who want to prevent a disaggregation of their territory. Pablo Iglesias was never shy about his republicanism and what he thinks of the constitution of 1978 but in a moment when spanish constitutional order was being challenged by separatism, his willingness to compromise the constitution alienated Podemos voters. Carolina Bescansa, one of the party founders criticized this strategy arguing Podemos was a nationwide political project and should talk more to Spanish people and not only about Catalunya.

PSOE ressurgence – Podemos was born and grew as an anti-establishment party and obviously benefited of PSOE centrism and closeness with the status-quo (PSOE leader, Alfredo Rubalcaba was minister in the governments of both Felipe Gonzalez and Pedro Sanchez). Pedro Sanchez first term as Secretary-General placed the party on a more left-wing note but he was constantly undermined by many PSOE historical barons and regional leaders. Iglesias refusal to give a hand to Sanchez to form a coalition in 2015 and 2016 plunges PSOE in a crisis which results in internal elections where Pedro Sanchez faces Susana Diaz. The president of Andalucia region is ideologically more centrist and managed to unite the entire PSOE establishment around her. From former PSOE government Presidents like Felipe Gonzalez and Zapatero to former ministers like Rubalcaba, Carme Chacon or Alfonso Guerra. Sanchez stunning victory against Diaz legitimized his leadership strategy. He not only doubled down on his strategy of pushing PSOE to the left but he was also free of the weight of historical PSOE politicians that pressured him. Without the strings of the establishment and unapologetically leftist, PSOE was able to compete with Podemos for every voter.

Somos la Izquierda(We are the left) – the slogan picked by Pedro Sanchez for PSOE congress after being re-elected Secretary-General



Internal infighting – Since it’s formation, Podemos was plagued by infighting. Of the initial group of five founders, only Iglesias remains at the board of the party. High profile members like mp’s and regional leaders openly criticized Iglesias; some were purged of their party positions, others left the party and created their own parties. Also, the way Podemos grew, anchored in regional alliances with smaller parties also contributed to the internal conflict. The growth was more based on the sum of other parties than the consolidation of Podemos itself. The left-wing party didn’t have total control of the small parties that composed it’s coalition and many times these parties looked for their self-interest and choose their own strategies. The most recent defection was Iñigo Errejon, one of the founders who was Podemos candidate for Madrid but he choose to run in the platform of mayor Manuela Carmena.

Of the five Podemos founders, only Iglesias remains at the board of the party

Pablo iglesias – Charismatic and assertive, the Spanish professor was the key figure of Podemos initial sucess but his image is also responsible for it’s downfall. Time and time again he was involved in bitter internal fights; his proximity with unpopular spanish politicians like Otegui and compliments to Hugo Chavez also damaged his popularity. In 2018, Iglesias and his girlfriend, Irene Montero(also from Podemos) faced criticism after the purchase of a luxury house outside Madrid for 600k euros. Among those who criticized the move is the mayor of Cadiz, from Podemos, José Maria Gonzalez who said “Podemos’s ethics code isn’t a formality,” Gonzalez said. “It’s a commitment to living like working people so that you can represent them.” Wether the criticism is fair or not, what is certain is that Iglesias went from an outsider with new ideas for Spain to someone constantly in the news for personal controversies.