Spain's Socialists re-elect Pedro Sanchez

After resigning seven months ago due to a power struggle within the party leadership, Pedro Sanchez has again been elected leader of Spain's Partido Socialista Obrero Espanol (PSOE) by its members.

"We are the vanguard of the political system in Spain," Sanchez told supporters at the Madrid party headquarters on Sunday night.

His victory is likely to move the party further to the left and make it harder for the  minority conservative government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to make the cross-party deals it has promised.  

PSOE party spokesman Mario Jimenez said Sanchez "was the clear winner" of Sunday's election open to the nearly 190,000 PSOE party members.

Sanchez won with 50 percent of the votes, 73,503 ballots representing an increase of 3,000 over his previous win in 2014.

His main rival, Andalusian regional president Susana Diaz, who had been instrumental in Sanchez's resignation last year, received 40 percent or 58,471 votes. Former Basque Country president Patxi Lopez won 10 percent, or 14,395 votes.

Sanchez won in all Spanish regions except Andalusia and Aragon, where Díaz won, and the Basque Country, where Lopez won.

Podemos no confidence vote

Reacting to the win, Pablo Iglesias, head of the far-left Podemos party, tweeted: "PSOE members have decided and have sent a very clear message. Congratulations and good luck, Sanchez." 

On Saturday, thousands rallied in Madrid to support a no-confidence vote against the Rajoy government brought by Podemos.

Rajoy's ruling Popular Party has been hit by a series of corruption scandals.

"The people are not afraid. They are telling the corrupted to 'get lost, we want a Spain of the 21st century," Iglesias said at the rally. "This country is better than its parliament and we are showing the way to the future."

End to power struggle?

Time will tell if Sanchez's win will put an end to party infighting, especially among the leadership which had backed the opposing candidates.

Diaz had the public support of most PSOE regional leaders and of the party's former prime ministers, Felipe Gonzalez and Jose Luis Zapatero. Antonio Hernando, the PSOE's spokesperson in parliament, announced his resignation on Sunday before the final vote was announced. 

The PSOE has lost three general elections since 2011 and has been increasingly challenged by the anti-establishment Podemos party.

jm/cmk (EFE, AP)