On Dec. 20, Spain will vote for a new government. But this campaign season is very different from all previous ones. Instead of debating over the best ways to tackle increasing unemployment, political corruption scandals and constitutional reforms, the electorate is focused on the recent victory of pro-independence parties in the Catalan parliamentary elections. This dynamic seems to work in favor of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, as it shifts attention from the corruption scandals of his Popular Party (PP) and the ineffective austerity measures applied during his time in office. The rise of a new left in Spain has been matched by the rise of a new far right that could end up in a position to exacerbate Rajoy’s policies.

In Catalonia’s elections, the increased turnout for secessionist parties — the main coalition, Together for Yes, and the radical leftist pro-independence Popular Unity Candidacy (CUP) — helped them win a majority of seats. Although these parties have managed to elect a new president of parliament, an impasse over other leadership issues will probably result in new elections next year.

In the meantime, the new coalition has put forward and voted for a motion calling for the “beginning of a process for the creation of an independent Catalan state in the form of a republic.” Predictably, this motion has triggered a conflict with the national government in Madrid on the grounds that it violates the Spanish Constitution.

Rajoy’s reaction has been disproportionate. Instead of using diplomacy to respond to Catalan demands for independence, he has appealed the motion before the Constitutional Court, requesting “the immediate suspension of this initiative and all its possible effects.” Two days later, the court unanimously agreed to suspend the motion. This explains why in the past few weeks, he began a round of consultations with all the other party leaders to reaffirm the unity of Spain.

Spaniards enthusiastic about the left-wing Podemos party’s anti-austerity eruption last year have tended to ignore the simultaneous emergence of its right-wing counterpart, Ciudadanos (Citizens). Its leader, Albert Rivera, a 35-year-old Catalan, is not only committed to the European Union neoliberal austerity measures but also opposed to the Catalan independence cause. Last spring, after nine years in Catalan politics, he decided to compete in the national elections.

Ciudadanos received almost 18 percent of the votes in Catalonia, becoming the second-largest party, after sweeping success in municipal elections earlier this year. It and Podemos herald the end of the two-party political system that has dominated Spain since the death of Generalissimo Francisco Franco in 1975. A televised interview with Rivera and Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias drew more than 5 million viewers in October.