Storm in Spain? The Spanish elections, the rise of Podemos and the Catalonian challenge, Amsterdam

The Spanish are getting ready for national elections on the 20th of December. What can we expect? And what are the possible consequences? An outlook on the Spanish political landscape with José Ignacio Torreblanca, Robert M. Fishman and Ben Crum.

In 2015 and 2016, a number of national elections all over Europe will be crucial for the future of the European integration process. Many of the political challenges that have been haunting Europe for the past years come together in Spain, the fourth biggest EU Member State. On 20 December 2015, the Spanish will go to the polls. The country was severely hit by the financial crisis with a heavy impact on its employment figures and its housing sector. In 2012 the country received special European financial assistance to prevent its financial sector from collapsing. The country’s main parties have been severely discredited, while challenger parties, most notably the left wing Podemos, have gained prominence. On top of that, the country is facing the challenge of a possible break-away attempt by Catalonian independents.

This evening will bring together two experts on the Spanish political landscape who will present their take on the possible outcomes of the elections in Spain and its consequences for Europe and the EU.

About the speakers

José Ignacio Torreblanca is the head of the Madrid Office of the European Council on Foreign Relations, and a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations and in its European Power programme. Torreblanca is furthermore a professor of political science at the National University of Distance Education in Madrid, where he teaches “The Political System of the European Union . He recently published Storm the Heavens: Politics and Podemos after the crisis (2015). In March 2015 he was announced the winner of the prestigious Salvador de Madariaga award for journalism in Spain. He was also ranked amongst the ten most influential new intellectuals in Spain and Latin-America by Foreign Policy en español in May 2011.

Robert M. Fishman is CONEX-Marie Curie Professor of Political Science and Sociology at Carlos III University in Madrid. Before joining Carlos III, he was Professor of Sociology and Kellogg Institute Fellow at the University of Notre Dame and prior to that, Associate Professor of Government and of Social Studies at Harvard University. Fishman’s books include Democracy’s Voices (Cornell University Press, 2004), Winner of Honorable Mention for Best Book (2005) of the American Sociological Association’s Section on Political Sociology; Working-Class Organization and the Return to Democracy in Spain (Cornell, 1990) and The Year of the Euro (University of Notre Dame Press, 2006). Much of his current work focuses on the post 1970s divergence between Spain and Portugal.

The event will be moderated by Ben Crum, Professor of Political Science at the VU University and ACCESS EUROPE Scientific Co-Director.

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