The PSOE does not want any doubts about this: the strategic ally of the Basque parties is the PNB and not EH Bildu. A few weeks before the elections in July and after the electoral setback, the Socialists want the bet to be clearly visualized and will make it evident in the constitution of the Basque town councils and the provincial councils. On the one hand, the PNB and the PSE are negotiating a global pact that will benefit the two formations to the detriment of EH Bildu. On the other hand, Navarre’s socialists have made it clear that they will not support the Abertzale coalition in Pamplona, ​​a fact that will be extended to other Navarre municipalities and that benefits UPN.
One of the PSOE’s cards in the hasty campaign that is approaching are the pacts that PP and Vox will inevitably have to reach in order to govern in many cities and communities in the next two months. Some politically risky agreements for the PP, which can counter-argue to the alliances of the Socialists with Bildu with a kind of “you plus”. Precisely, it is the scenario that the PSOE now wants to avoid with the elimination of EH Bildu from the equation; showing him as an instrumental ally that has allowed him to approve the social policies approved during the legislature. But an ally from whom an abyss separates them.
In the socialist ranks they believe that the agreements with EH Bildu throughout the legislature have been one of the factors that has cost them in the appointment with the ballot boxes on Sunday, especially following the inclusion of exeterras in some of the lists of the coalition The PP made it one of the axes of the campaign and the PSOE does not want it to happen again.
This is where PNB comes into play. The Jeltzales have claimed throughout the legislature a preferred partner role, which they have not always achieved. However, in the final stretch of the mandate they will see how the socialists themselves emphasize the role. In a context of total struggle between PNB and EH Bildu, supporting the Jeltzales means opening a rift with respect to the Abertzale coalition, even isolating it in the institutional sphere. The PSOE is interested, especially in terms of Spanish politics, although also from a Basque perspective.
The main road depends on this global pact between Basque nationalists and socialists. It is a classic alliance in Basque politics. The PNB-PSE understanding has worked at different historical moments since 1986, with the added precedent of the concentration government of Lehendakari José Antonio Agirre 50 years earlier. It is valid in the Basque Government and also operated in the deputations and in many town councils during the legislature that has just concluded. There is no doubt that this time there is the circumstance that, given the rise of EH Bildu, some institutions will need the PP.
The clearest examples are the mayorship of Vitoria and the presidency of the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa, the two most coveted positions that will favor the pact. EH Bildu has prevailed in both institutions, with more solvency in the case of the Gipuzkoa territory, so that Jeltzales and Socialists will need the support of the PP, third in the Alabaster capital and fifth in Gipuzkoa.
The global agreement in the Basque Country will allow the PSOE to stage a break with EH Bildu and, in a Basque key, govern one of the capitals after 12 years, as well as enjoy stability in the fiefdoms where it was first. The pact also offers benefits for PNB. The Jeltzales have shown wear and tear these elections and have lost 86,000 votes in the town councils. They admit an abstention from punishment and on the same election night they announced a “reflection”. “It was a clear warning and we take note of it for the future”, pointed out Andoni Ortuzar. In any case, they want to move to another screen as soon as possible and start drawing a context that puts them in a winning position. The pact will allow them to manage the three councils and enjoy stability in many councils.
In the case of PNB, however, it also carries some risks. A new Basque Parliament and a new Lehendakari will be elected next spring. The two formations face off in a chess game in which every move is measured. EH Bildu put PNB in ​​jeopardy on Sunday. Ortuzar will move to isolate this formation in the formation of town councils and deputations. The Abertzale coalition, meanwhile, aims to grow in the July elections and will allude to an alignment of the PNB with the PP. He is looking for a new chess, to prevail in general games against the opponent he has to beat.
At the same time, the proximity of the election shakes up the Navarrese board. EH Bildu had the ambition to return to govern Pamplona four years later, he had fallen short of UPN’s votes. In his favor, he had a strategic movement of pieces: the socialist MarÃa Chivite needs the abstention of the Abertzale for the investiture. The PSN has already said no to Joseba Asiron (EH Bildu) in Pamplona. Chivite’s re-election may be postponed beyond July 23. The priority is the general elections.
