Martin Rabellino (1982-) was Prime Minister of Spain from 1 April 2019 to 13 December 2021 (preceding Adriana Ramos) and from 15 August 2022. Rabellino was a social democrat from Extremadura, and he successfully built a coalition of center-left parties which won four consecutive elections and won a plurality of seats in its fifth election. Rabellino was a talented party leader whose party rose from 10 to 13 seats in November 2019 and held this lead for several ensuing elections, despite the disloyalty of a few members of his party. Rabellino's government of 2019-2021 was successful in implementing public programs such as retirement homes, public libraries, public buses, a national football league, universal primary education, agricultural subsidies, and a child benefit program, and it staved off a brief period of economic downturn with a new income tax in April 2021. However, in December 2021, due to the insurgency of his deputies Salma Paez and Alonso Borja and the absence of his coalition partner, Podemos leader Mia Soria (who was writing a law at the time), he lost a narrow government formation contest to People's Party leader Adriana Ramos, who defeated him by a slim margin of 19-18 with the support of Ciudadanos (Rabellino's former coalition partner), Vox, the PNV (which had formed part of Rabellino's first government), and defectors within the ERC and the PSOE. He returned to power in 2022 after firing disloyal members from the PSOE and taking advantage of a PP corruption scandal, and, by December 2023, his party had won 43.31% of the vote and 17/40 seats in the Congress of Deputies, coming closer to a majority in the Chamber as Rabellino's government gained even more popularity than it had previously accrued during Rabellino's first several terms.
Biography[]
Martin Rabellino was born in Badajoz, Extremadura, Spain in 1982 to a middle-class family. Rabellino worked in the business world before entering politics with the social democratic PSOE party and being elected to the Chamber of Deputies. He became his party's leader ahead of the 18 March 2019 general election, in which he led his party to win 26.21% of the vote and 10/40 seats in the Cortes. Behind the PSOE was the People's Party (PP) with 24.95% and 10 seats, Vox with 12.74% and 5 seats, Podemos with 10.21% and 4 seats, the Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) with 9% and 4 seats, the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) with 8.9% and 4 seats, and Ciudadanos (C's) with 8% and 3 seats. In a vote of 23-16, he won the support of his party (apart from Catalan deputy Cristina Pladeval), Podemos, the ERC, the PNV (apart from PNV leader Manolo Larrabure), and even the center-right Ciudadanos to form a government, with PP leader Adriana Ramos becoming leader of the opposition.
Premiership[]
Rabellino and the PSOE enjoyed a wave of popular support after he formed his government, with the PSOE winning the support of 29.04% of the population at the time of Rabellino's appointment as Prime Minister. Under Rabellino, the Cortes voted 36-1 to approve a bus transport service (with PSOE deputy Nil Angles being the only one to vote against the law) and 37-0 to approve a national football league over the next two weeks. On 22 April, the PSOE enjoyed a fundraising victory when it raised €191 million, ahead of the PP's €161 million, Vox's €100 million, Podemos' €78 million, the PNV's €69 million, the ERC's €64 million, and Ciudadanos' €51 million. On 13 May 2019, the Cortes voted 33-1 in favor of PSOE deputy Alonso Borja's public housing bill, followed by a 29 July 2019 retirement homes bill which passed by a margin of 35-2 (with PSOE defectors Cristina Pladeval and Monica Valverde voting against it). On 18 November 2019, new elections were held, and the PSOE increased its share of the vote to 33.07% and 13 seats (+3 seats), while the PP fell to 22.56% and 9 seats (-1 seat), Vox fell to 11.03% and 5 seats (no seat loss), Podemos fell to 8.25% and 3 seats (-1 seat), the ERC fell to 8.14% and 3 seats (-1 seat), the PNV fell to 8.04% and 3 seats (-1 seat), and Ciudadanos rose to 8.91% and 4 seats (+1 seat). The PSOE welcomed freshmen Eva Cardenal, Felisa Mandibecua, and Cristian Sabate into its ranks, and, on 2 December 2019, Rabellino received another mandate to lead, receiving 21 votes to Ramos' 16; he again won the support of his party, Podemos, and half of Ciudadanos (Angelica Marcet voted against him, while Margareda Aranega did not vote); he was also supported by PP deputy Jose Maria Valderas, although the PNV backed the PP, and PSOE deputy Asier Vazquez voted against him. By the start of 2020, Spain had a budget of €250 million (which was growing by €6 million on a weekly basis).
Rabellino's second year in power began with an approval rating of 32%, and, on 17 February 2020, his party won another fundraising victory by winning €214 million, with the PP placing in second with €169 million, followed by Vox with €88 million, Ciudadanos with €75 million, Podemos with €73 million, the ERC with €62 million, and the PNV with €58 million. The Cortes voted 33-3 to approve agriculture research, and 31-1 to approve funding for the Olympic Games (with Podemos being the only party to oppose it). On 20 July 2020, a new round of elections were held, and protests by Ciudadanos a week earlierand the government's suppression of them led to the PSOE's popularity taking a last-minute hit. In the ensuing election, the PSOE's share of the vote fell to 32.62%, but it retained its 13 seats in the Cortes. The PP fell to 21.64% and 9 seats (-1 seat), while Vox rose to 11.06% and 4 seats (-1 seat), Ciudadanos rose to 8.99% and 4 seats (no seat gain), the PNV rose to 8.92% and 4 seats (+1 seat), Podemos rose to 8.46% and 3 seats (no seat gain), and the ERC rose to 8.32% and 3 seats (no seat gain). On 3 August 2020, Rabellino received a third mandate to lead, winning the backing of 20 lawmakers (Podemos, his party, the ERC, and Ciudadanos, minus PSOE members Adara Bolivar and Estefania Burgos and Ciudadanos member Manuel Bailen) to Ramos' 16.
Rabellino's third government started out with a popularity rate of 33% a week after the government formation. Rabellino, seeking to balance Spain's budget (which, at €321 million, was by 17 August growing by a mere €2 million a week), had his party cast the deciding vote against a proposed party funding law, with the Cortes voting 17-10 against party funding (the PSOE, ERC, and PP opposing the vote or abstaining, and Podemos and the nationalist third-parties voting in favor). The PSOE later voted to keep Spain's road maintenance program, and an effort to reform the constitution to transform Spain into a two-party presidential democracy succeeded with a 20-12 plurality of the vote, although it did not meet the threshold needed to become law; the PSOE rejected the law due to its support for Spain's parliamentary democracy, while all of Podemos' lawmakers were busy with writing laws, one ERC deputy was indisposed while another voted against and another in favor, and the PNV, PP, Ciudadanos, and Vox uniformly voted in favor of the amendment. The Congress then voted 17-14 to keep the housing tax, 26-8 to keep its research system, 28-4 to approve public libraries, 27-6 to keep the agricultural subsidy (with the PP voting to abolish it), 32-3 to keep the monarchy (with PSOE deputy Elene Duarte, ERC deputy Felicitat Castellvi, and Ciudadanos deputy Margareda Aranega being the sole republican votes, plus 3 abstainers). In the second week of 2021, the PSOE was again triumphant in fundraising, raising €233 million, while the closest opposition came from PP, whose fundraising fell to €167 million as Vox rose to €90 million, the PNV rose to €76 million, Podemos rose to €75 million, the ERC rose to €74 million, and Ciudadanos fell to €67 million. The Cortes then voted 36-1 to approve universal primary education, although this froze Spain's budget at €285 million. On 29 March 2021, new elections were held, and the PSOE's share of the vote rose to 33.34% and 13 seats (no seat gain), while PP's vote fell to 20.36% and 8 seats (-1 seat), Vox rose to 11.51% and 5 seats (+1 seat), Podemos rose to 9.95% and 4 seats (+1 seat), Ciudadanos fell to 8.59% and 4 seats (no seat loss), the PNV fell to 8.55% and 3 seats (-1 seat), and the ERC fell to 7.69% and 3 seats (no seat loss). On 15 April 2021, Rabellino received a fourth mandate to lead with 23 votes to Ramos' 17; he won the support of his party (despite two betrayals), Podemos, the ERC, and Ciudadanos (as well as Vox deputy Arriano Ibarboure), while the PP, PNV, and Vox opposed him.
A week after his fourth election victory, Rabellino immediately had Alonso Borja propose an income tax to help reverse Spain's weekly loss of €3 million; the income tax would bring in €5 million a week and reverse the economy's decline. The economy soon came to recover, although a blizzard caused €1 million worth of damage and led to Rabellino overseeing €25 million repair efforts. On 18 October 2021, the Congress voted 26-7 in favor of Estibaliz Aybar's child benefit program, which would cost €1 million a week. Rabellino had his party abstain from the vote on abolishing the national football league (proposed by Aimar Hidalgo of Podemos), resulting in a "keep" vote of 22-1 with 13 abstentions (PSOE deputy Cristina Pladeval was the only vote to abolish). On 29 November 2021, new elections were held, and the PSOE saw its vote share drop to 33%, but Rabellino again retained his party's 13 seats. The PP rose to 20.9% and 8 seats (no seat gain), Vox rose to 12.02% and 5 seats (no seat gain), Podemos rose to 10.12% and 4 seats (no seat gain), Ciudadanos rose to 9.23% and 4 seats (no seat gain), the PNV fell to 8.21% and 3 seats (no seat loss), and the ERC fell to 6.51% and 3 seats (no seat loss). In the ensuing leadership election, however, the PSOE was impaired by Podemos leader Mia Soria's preoccupation with writing a bill and by the betrayal of PSOE deputies Salma Paez and Alonso Borja and ERC deputy Felicitat Castellvi, resulting in Rabellino losing the election 18-19 to Adriana Ramos, who proceeded to assume the premiership as Rabellino became Leader of the Opposition.
Leader of the Opposition[]
Now in opposition, Rabellino took advantage of his loss of power to clean house. Paez was fired (making way for Elene Duarte's return to the Congress), and she was followed by Alonso Borja that same day; he was replaced by a freshman and fellow Catalan, Roci Olles. Rabellino ensured that his party continued to dominate lawmaking, and a PP bill to set the threshold for constitutional amendments at 80% was passed almost unanimously, inadvertently giving the PSOE the power to decide which amendments passed or failed. A corruption scandal involving PP lawmaker Angela Monte damaged the PP's popularity, and Rabellino's ability to campaign as an average parliamentarian boosted his party's media impact and, thus, its popularity. On 1 August 2022, new elections were held, and the PSOE won 36.66% of the vote and 15 seats (+2 seats), the PP fell to 19.45% and 8 seats (no seat loss), Vox fell to 11.32% and 4 seats (-1 seat), Podemos fell to 8.98% and 4 seats (no seat loss), Ciudadanos fell to 8.42% and 3 seats (-1 seat), the ERC fell to 7.69% and 3 seats (no seat loss), and the PNV fell to 7.47% and 3 seats (no seat loss). The PSOE welcomed Basque PSOE deputy Maia Acundegui (who won a Vox seat) and Catalan PSOE deputy Pepa Casamort (who won a Ciudadanos seat) to the Congress, where they had achieved their best yet electoral results in response to the Monte scandal. However, PSOE deputy Eva Cardenal changed parties to join the PP, returning the PSOE to 15 seats. However, on 15 August 2022, Rabellino won the leadership contest with the full support of his party, most of Podemos, the ERC, and PNV deputy Sorauren Legaria, defeating Ramos by a margin of 19-18 (the same margin by which he had previously been defeated).
Return to power[]
Rabellino returned to power with the support of Podemos, the ERC, and a deputy from the PNV, and Ciudadanos' continued dislike for the PSOE led to Rabellino abandoning hopes that he could win back the conservative-liberals and instead resolving to pursue bold reforms without regard for his centrist opposition. The PSOE oversaw a 28-5 vote to legalize gambling, which provided the government with extra tax income. The Cortes also voted 34-4 to approve an ambulance service, voted 24-4 to increase the number of research priorities from two to three, and 20-15 against a stamp duty (with the PSOE and Podemos supporting the duty and the other parties opposing it). On 6 February 2023, the PSOE again dominated the fundraising season, raising €247 million, while the PP's fundraising fell to €144 and Vox's fundraising rose to €95 million, reflecting a rise in alt-right conservatism in response to the PP's fall from grace with the electorate. The Cortes then voted 31-5 to keep the national football league, 29-4 to approve arts subsidies, and 19-16 in favor of a land tax. On 3 April 2023, new general elections saw the PSOE's share of the vote rise to 39.56% and 16 seats (+2 seats), the PP fell to 18.64% and 7 seats (-2 seats), Vox rose to 11.56% and 5 seats (+1 seat), the ERC rose to 8.81% and 3 seats (no seat gain), Podemos fell to 7.55% and 3 seats (-1 seat), the PNV fell to 7.22% and 3 seats, and Ciudadanos fell to 6.65% and 3 seats. The PSOE welcomed newcomers Denis Malillos (who had taken Rabellino's old seat on his ascension to the premiership), Ester Saldou (who took a Podemos seat in Navarre), and Irati Castejon (who won a seat from the PP in Andalusia). On 17 April 2022, Rabellino was returned to power with 22 votes (every deputy from Podemos, PSOE, and the ERC was in attendance and voted in his favor) to Ramos' 17 votes (provided by her party, the PNV, Vox, and the two present Ciudadanos deputies of their three total).
Rabellino's sixth government, which had uniform support from the left (and a 39.03% approval rating at the time of its formation), inherited a slowly growing economy. On 1 May 2023, Rabellino decided to make Adara Bolivar the deputy leader of his party, funding opportunities for her to boost her public image so as to groom her for the leadership should he one day step down fron the leadership or retire. The Cortes went on to vote 23-6 to approve government-funded sex education, 20-5 to keep the housing tax, 17-15 against a school bus tax, 35-1 to keep the ambulance service, and 19-9 to keep gambling legal. On 4 December 2023, new elections were held, resulting in the PSOE winning 43.31% of the vote and 17 seats (+1 seat), the PP falling to 16.77% and 7 seats (no seat loss), Vox falling to 9.73% and 4 seats (-1 seat), the ERC falling to 7.75% and 3 seats (no seat loss), Podemos falling to 6.67% and 3 seats (no seat loss), the PNV rising to 11.08% and 4 seats (+1 seat), and Ciudadanos falling to 4.69% and 2 seats (-1 seat). The PNV won back one of its constituencies from Vox, while the PSOE picked up a seat in Catalonia, represented by freshman deputy Marga Masip.
Under Rabellino's seventh government, the socialist parties controlled 20 of the Congress' 40 seats, while the regionalists controlled 7 seats, 3 of which belonged to the PSOE's coalition allies, the ERC, effectively giving the coalition government a policymaking majority in addition to widespread public support. On 18 December 2023, Rabellino was granted an eighth mandate to rule in a vote of 22-15, with Podemos, the PSOE, and the ERC backing him, and the PP, PNV, Ciudadanos, and Vox voting in favor of Ramos.