We’re joined again today by Eoghan Gilmartin to continue our discussion about the government of Pedro Sanchez in Spain. Eoghan is an Irish journalist based in Madrid, a regular contributor to Jacobin, and co-host of the Sobremesa podcast about Spanish politics.

In contrast with Greece and Portugal, Spain still has a government today headed by the center left. The Spanish Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez has attracted a lot of interest from the international media for appearing to buck the trend as many European countries shift to the right. He’s been unusually outspoken on the subject of Gaza. And Sanchez was the only European leader to directly challenge Donald Trump over his demand for a big increase in military spending.

Sanchez feels confident that he will lead the Socialist Party in the next general election, but his government is facing a number of challenges, including a corruption scandal that implicated some of his political allies. Today, we’re going back to the early stages of the Sanchez government, before asking whether it has a future in the years to come.

Hear part one of our interview: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/long-reads-pedro-sanchez-and-spanish-politics-w/id791564318?i=1000732303080

Find Eoghan’s recent articles, including “Spain Is Right to Reject Increased Military Spending,” on the Jacobin website: https://jacobin.com/2025/06/trump-nato-spain-military-sanchez

Support for this episode comes from Revol Press: revolpress.com

Long Reads is a Jacobin podcast looking in-depth at political topics and thinkers, both contemporary and historical, with the magazine’s longform writers. Hosted by features editor Daniel Finn. Produced by Conor Gillies with music by Knxwledge.

6-21-19 What's News