Sanchez and Diaz show complicity in front of Abascal and absent Figo

It was a heated debate, especially in the duels between them Yolanda Diaz And Santiago Abascal, But away from last week’s ranting. Pedro Sánchez and his vice president expressed their intention to continue to live in the Left Alliance and used Abascal to focus criticism on the absent Alberto Núñez Figo, in the debate on Wednesday night on RTVE. The Vox leader has set himself up as the right’s spokesman, with the People’s Party almost never mentioned and without making it clear whether he would demand entry into government if the right achieved a majority.

Abascal was responsible for the opening debate And it took a few seconds to shoot. He accused them of lies, lies, manipulation and slander without listening to his opponents. It seemed like a worse omen, but it turned out to be deceiving. So much so that at the end of the first block, regarding the economy, the moderator, Xabier Fortes, felt the need to encourage the leaders to debate more intensely and even interrupt themselves. It has nothing to do with sternness and harshness Head to head between Sanchez and Figo in the tenth.

The duel between the left and the far right was paradoxically less polarizing than that between the two traditional parties. On the one hand, because the leader of Vox formulated his attacks, even the most terrible ones, without exaggerating the tone. On the other hand, because Sanchez, after the fiasco in his confrontation with Figo, this time avoided interruptions and provided clear evidence of his unwillingness to return to the scene of the previous confrontation. It was Diaz who sought to engage the far-right leader with more gusto and belligerence. The vice president also showed both sides of her campaign: She tried to be propositional as she did in the first week, and at the same time sought a clash, as she did in recent days.

The Soummar filter and the Vox filter shone through the night’s most tense moments. The first relates to violence against women. He attacked Abascal in his haste with legal consequences Yes, just yes – “117 monsters in the street” – and passing law Which made him directly ask his opponents: “What does a woman understand?” He received no response.

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Diaz continued her counterattack by showing a photo of two Valencian deputies who, she said, were laughing during a minute’s silence over the murder of a woman. Both of them got into a violent fight and the vice president shouted, “I’m not afraid of you, Mr. Abascal.” Sparks flew again later when Diaz demanded that the Vox candidate apologize for falsely claiming that the recent murder of a Madrid employer was the work of an immigrant.

The debate was for three persons, but there was a fourth, absent as present. The empty chair did not exist physically, only symbolically. Fortis warned him at first. Then, during the discussion, it was slow to come to light. Abascal didn’t say a word about Figo and just took advantage of the gap. Sanchez and Diaz began by explaining that for them the leader of Vox also represented Figo. The president reiterated his idea that if the current government does not repeat itself, Spain will be doomed to a “dark time tunnel”.

But it wasn’t until the last of the three blocs — those of the Accords, after economics and social policy — when Sanchez retaliated head-on. “Mr. Vigo is not here to not take responsibility for all the lies he told in the other debate,” he said. And also because he is ashamed to appear with Monsieur Abascal. He concludes a covenant with him and judges with him, but he is ashamed to appear with him. Diaz took a little longer, but he didn’t miss the opportunity to attack Figo either. He promised that it would be “the last time a candidate is absent from the debate” and that his group would support reform of the law to make attendance compulsory. Then he took the opportunity to bring up the topic he had been airing in recent days, Vigo’s old friendship with drug trafficker Marcial Dorado, and also with the intention of putting the leader of Vox in trouble:

—Do you think it is normal for Mr. Feijóo to be associated with a drug dealer?

What does not seem natural to me is to say this of the absent.

Abascal barely referred to the People’s Congress all night. At first he wanted to make it clear that his economic policy is not the politics of popularity, and when it was the turn to talk about pacts, he criticized the fact that Figo devoted part of his face to face with Sanchez to ask him to let him rule if the People’s Party is the list of the most voted. He left no clue about Vox’s intentions after next Sunday or Abascal’s possible desire to enter the executive branch.

Sanchez confirmed his intention to repeat the agreement with Diaz. The harmony between the two was very evident all night, in your case and by their first names. Soummar’s candidate taunted the socialist to stress that she did not share his positions on issues such as housing or the retirement age. But the contradictions never left the friendly tone, which is captured in moments like these, when Sanchez states:

– We must continue to go forward, but with our feet on the ground.

“I have them, Pedro.”

-I know. I know you, Yolanda.

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