Galicia: Spain's conservative heartland
What's the secret behind "the strongest brand in Spanish politics"?
In a part of Spain with more than 70 words to describe the water that falls from the sky, one could have been forgiven for thinking that the map was forecasting another damp Monday in Galicia. The sea of deep blue, however, represented a different aspect of life in this corner of northwest Spain, one that shares a similar sense of inevitability: a regional election absolute majority for the conservative Partido Popular (PP).
During the campaign, the usual clichés did the rounds across the national media: Gallegos answer a question with a question or a “depende”, or when you meet a Galician on the stairs, you never know if they’re going up or down. While the secret ballot element of elections helps, it’s clear that Galicians leave their ambiguity at the door of their polling stations.
“The Partido Popular in Galicia is like Rafa Nadal or Serena Williams,” wrote Victor Lapuente in El País, the left-leaning daily newspaper, following the election of Alfonso Rueda as president of La Xunta de Galicia. “Five (consecutive) absolute majorities is like winning Wimbledon five times.” A similar sentiment echoed over in Catalonia: “What happened in Galicia is unrepeatable anywhere else,” wrote José María Lassalle in La Vanguardia.
As Galicians went to the polls on Sunday, February 18th, the Partido Popular had governed the Xunta de Galicia for 36 of the last 42 years. Having kicked off his campaign in Pontevedra’s plaza de toros, the only still-active bullring in Galicia, with Rueda it will be four more.
But what's the PP Galicia’s secret? And why is it, according to Rubén Santamarta of La Voz de Galicia, "the strongest brand in Spanish politics"?
Tierra ties
With the exception of Andalusia, no other region in Spain has such a deep attachment to its tierra/terra (land) than Galicia – it’s no coincidence that the identities of these two regions are inextricably linked to emigration. Today, after Vigo and A Coruña, Buenos Aires is the third city home to the most Galicians.
The feeling of morriña — the longing for a land, a person, or a time in the past – is still very much alive among younger generations of Galicians who have had to relocate to Madrid, Barcelona, or abroad for work. In a region where agriculture is still a primary economic driver, the sentiment of “Galicia Calidade” (quality) underlines the pride that Gallegos of all ages have in the produce of their land. And just like the Arzúa-Ulloa cheese and Albariño wine, the Partido Popular’s roots can be traced back to Galicia.
Spain’s conservative party was founded by the Villalba-born (Lugo) Manuel Fraga, formerly minister of information and tourism during the Franco regime. On a national level, he was leader of the opposition in the 1980s but, as pointed out by Giles Tremlett, “his Francoist background meant he could take his party no further.” He would return north to lead the party’s Galician operations, turning the screw on what has become a vice-like grip on the region.
“The PP is, in effect, the biggest party in Galicia,” wrote Roberto Blanco Valdés in La Voz de Galicia. Its brand presence in the region has been helped by its strategic approach to positioning: being everything, everywhere, all at once. “It’s the only party present in all 313 municipalities, in rural areas and large urban centres, across all four provinces and social groups, among those who speak Spanish, those who speak Galician, and like the majority, those who are able to operate easily in both.”
In Madrid, the stereotypical conservative voter strolls around the Salamanca barrio on Sunday mornings, impeccably dressed for breakfast with a copy of El Mundo or ABC rolled up in the hand that isn’t tucked behind his back. The Partido Popular in this part of Spain, however, has proven its ability to transcend borders and classes - a typical PP voter in Galicia could just as easily be someone who drives a Mercedes in Marín or a Massey Ferguson in Monforte.
This wide appeal and ferociously loyal supporter base make it a formidable force. "Within the PP there is a deep-rooted Galician feeling,” Daniel Souza of El País tells me. “Unlike other regions in Spain, it’s uncommon to see many Spanish flags at their Galician rallies, but lots of Galicia flags.” Even the party’s logo has a distinctly coastal feel – a seagull would have no business being near the party HQ in Madrid!
That said, the dominance of PP Galicia is much more than a marketing success story. Brand loyalty often comes down to a nuts and bolts question: does the thing work?
In Galicia, the perception is that, when compared to other parts of Spain, things work well.
And perception, it’s said, matters - not the truth.
Less lío goes a long way
In Código Mariano, professor of politics at the University of Santiago de Compostela Antón Losada explained how “the immense majority of Spaniards born before 1970 do not like political lío (a mess/complications). It brings back too many bad memories.”
In 1991, those aged 55 or older accounted for 28% of Galicia’s population. By 2023, that figure has jumped to 41%. With a rapidly greying population, it seems unlikely that a lust for lío is likely to sprout up anytime soon.
In a highly de-centralised country where regions have real power, Galician politics is tranquil - it’s the only regional parliament in Spain where the extreme right party, Vox, has failed to win a single seat. Relatively free of culture wars, the region has been able to focus on getting the basics right.
As reported by FADSP, Galicia has a healthcare budget of €1,929.41 per capita for 2024, which compares favourably to Catalonia (€1,576.44) and Madrid (€1,468.38). In November 2023, the Xunta announced that Galicia placed second behind Madrid in the ranking for public hospital waiting times for surgery. Its average wait time of 66 days wasn’t far off half the national average (112).
Investment in public education, meanwhile, is up 17% over the past decade and, according to infolibre, only Asturias has outperformed Galicia as the region with the greatest progression in the education level of its population over the past 20 years.
All too familiar with the uncertainties and risks of maritime life, it’s not all that surprising there seems to be very little appetite to rock the boat in Galicia.
Micro-climates
From the Madrid-like extremes (“nine months of winter, three months of hell”) of Ourense to the stable temperatures of the Rías Baixas zone (famous for its Albariño wine), Galicia’s many micro-climates resemble the different conditions that prevail when it comes to municipal, regional, and general elections.
“I know people in Pontevedra who voted Miguel Anxo Fernández Lores (BNG) for mayor, Alfonso Rueda (PP) for regional president, and Pedro Sánchez (PSOE) in the general election,” Alfredo Lopez Penide of La Voz de Galicia tells me. “Is it a case of backing the favourite horse each time? I don't think so. I think they are choosing who they believe to be the best option for each position.”
The city halls of A Coruña, Vigo, Santiago de Compostela, and Pontevedra, for example, all have left-wing mayors, shared between Spain’s Socialist party (PSOE) and the Galician Nationalist Bloc (BNG). Their work on a municipal level has been rewarded at the polls. But as shown in February’s elections, everything to the left of the Partido Popular on a regional level is a zero-sum failure.
Led by Ana Pontón, the BNG “celebrated” a historic result following an impressive campaign, but there was just one problem: the avalanche of votes gained came at the expense of their would-be coalition partners. The Socialists haemorrhaged more than a third of its seats, highlighting the absence of a clear regional infrastructure within Pedro Sanchez’s party.
Alberto Núñez Feijóo, the current leader of the opposition and most-voted candidate in July 2023’s general election, was president of the Xunta between 2009-2022 before swapping home comforts for the bear pit that is national politics in Madrid. If he eventually succeeds Spain’s current socialist leader Pedro Sánchez, he would become Galicia’s second prime minister after the great enigma of Spanish politics, Mariano Rajoy.
Despite Rajoy’s ousting as prime minister after a vote of no confidence, the internal strife during the Pablo Casado era, and the side effects associated with getting into bed with Vox in other regions, the Partido Popular in Galicia has been able to seamlessly replace candidates while managing to stave off voter fatigue. “The Partido Popular in Galicia is a perfectly-oiled machine,” Alfredo Lopez Penide tells me. “It runs like clockwork.”
Looking at the lay of the land on the left, it doesn’t look like anyone is going to knock the PP off its Galician perch any time soon.