Spanish PM’s hard-left ally says she won’t run in next national election

MADRID, Feb 25 (Reuters) – Spain’s hard-left Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz said on Wednesday she would not contest the next parliamentary election, expected in 2027, in a blow to Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez who will need the support of left-wing parties to secure a majority.

In a letter posted on social media on Wednesday, Diaz, 54, a chic lawyer who is also one of Sanchez’s three deputies, said she would continue working to improve people’s lives as a minister but would not be a candidate in the election.

Diaz gave no specific reason for the decision, which comes as opinion polls indicate a surge in support for Spain’s conservative People’s Party and for the far-right Vox.

Diaz, who founded a multi-party leftist coalition, Sumar, in 2023 and was once one of Spain’s most popular politicians, is credited with substantially raising the minimum wage and reversing core elements of an unpopular labour reform to bolster economic growth.

However, her relations with Spain’s business lobby have progressively soured, and she failed to deliver on a promise to shorten the working week.

Her apparent exit from politics leaves an already fragmented left without a unifying standard-bearer at a time when Sumar has been weakened by internal splits and the anti-establishment Podemos has lost much of its former clout.

Vox posted strong results in recent regional elections including in the northern Aragon region, seen as a bellwether indicating a broader rightward turn at the national level.

Earlier this month, an appeal from lawmaker Gabriel Rufian of the Catalan separatist party ERC and Sumar member Emilio Delgado to create a new unified front of left-leaning forces – including pro-independence groups – drew a sceptical response from many on the left.

(Reporting by Emma Pinedo; Editing by David Latona and Gareth Jones)