Spain’s ruling Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) suffered a crushing setback in the snap regional elections in Aragón.
In the ballot yesterday, it slumped to one of its worst historical performance, losing ground amid a surge by the right-wing Vox party.
Provisional results from the Government of Aragón and the National Electoral Commission, with more than 98 per cent of votes counted, show the centre-right People’s Party (PP) emerging as the largest force with 26 seats in the 67-seat Cortes of Aragón. That is down two from its 2023 tally, despite topping the poll with around 34 per cent of the vote.
The PSOE, led by former minister Pilar Alegría, collapsed to 18 seats, down five, equalling its all-time low from 2015. It secured 24.3 per cent of the vote in what analysts describe as a humiliating defeat for Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s party.
Vox delivered the night’s clearest winner, more than doubling its representation from seven to 14 seats and claiming nearly 18 per cent of the vote, a sharp rise that cements its role as kingmaker in any right-wing coalition.
Regional party Chunta Aragonesista (CHA) also doubled its seats to six, capitalising on disillusionment on the Left, while smaller groups such as Aragón Existe held two and Izquierda Unida-Movimiento Sumar retained one.
The snap poll, called by PP regional President Jorge Azcón after budget gridlock, was intended to strengthen his position but instead left the PP even more reliant on Vox support to form a government.
In 2024, Vox had left the regional Aragón Governmeny, citing unhappiness with the lack of structural reforms within the government, although others saw it more as an electoral move.
Azcón declared victory, insisting the PP remained the only party capable of leading and vowing to begin investiture talks immediately. “We have won the elections and only the PP can form a government,” Azcón said, while acknowledging the need for alliances.
Alegría conceded the result was “not good” for the PSOE, framing it as evidence that the PP had become “even more hostage to the far right”.
Sánchez, speaking from Madrid, congratulated Azcón but insisted the PSOE would continue as “the only progressive alternative” nationally.
Vox leader Alejandro Nolasco hailed the outcome as a rejection of the “bipartisan scam”, positioning his party as the true driver of change on the Right.
The result in Aragón — often dubbed “Spain’s Ohio” for its role as a national bellwether — follows a similar PSOE rout in Extremadura in December 2025 and deepens pressure on Sánchez’s minority government in Madrid.
Spanish Socialists are weighed down by several major corruption scandals, economic concerns and migration debates, with the PSOE-led central government in Madrid recently deciding to legalise 500,000 migrants in a controversial move.
Aragón now faces coalition negotiations, with the PP-Vox axis appearing the most viable path to a stable majority, although talks could prove fraught given Vox’s demands on issues such as immigration and regional autonomy.
