Spanish Politics: From the Crisis of Representation to Polarization

Here, Oscar Garcia Augustin and Paolo Cossarini analyse the recent history of the Spanish body-politic, with special reference to the populism and polarization that have taken over politics in the country since the enormous turbulence of the 2008 global financial crisis. The financial and economic crisis gave birth first to anti-austerity movements and a subsequent left-wing populist party, and then to a series of socio-political ruptures that have reconfigured politics permanently in Europe’s fifth largest economy.

Topics covered include an assessment of the Catalan march towards independence, the reconfiguration of Spain’s party system, the rise of far-right groups, increased feminist and equality activism, municipalism, and a growing environmentalist movement. The authors, both experts on populism as well as Spain’s political system, reflect on these aspects of the current Spanish situation in order to provide a comprehensive socio-political overview of 21st century Spain.

Óscar García Agustín is Associate Professor in the Department of Culture and Learning, Aalborg University, Denmark. He has co-edited various volumes including Podemos and the New Political Cycle (2018) and Catalan Independence and the Crisis of Sovereignty (2021).

Paolo Cossarini is Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Culture and Learning, Aalborg University, Denmark. He is co-editor of Populism and Passions: Democratic Legitimacy after Austerity (2019), and The Impact of Populism on European Institutions and Civil Society. Discourses, Practices, and Policies (2021).