Informal interaction between political parties in the formation of the Spanish government (based on the materials of the 2023 electoral cycle)

The topic of the article is relevant due to the fact that informal institutions play an important role in the functioning of political systems. The crisis of political parties, manifested in all Western countries, is especially pronounced in contemporary Spain. The purpose of the article is to find out the informal interactions of Spanish political parties using the example of inter-party negotiations on the formation of a government in 2023. The methodological basis of the work is historical neo-institutionalism. The empirical basis of the research comprises the speeches of political figures, the results of opinion polls and parliamentary elections, articles in periodicals (newspapers «El Pais», «La Vanguardia» and «OKDiario»). The influence of the parameters of institutional design (proportional electoral system with a low barrier and high regionalization of the party system) on the use of informal institutions in Spain is revealed. Spanish political parties use informal interaction practices when forming a government: negotiations, exchange of resources (support for the election of candidates in exchange for recognition of the status of regional languages), draft cooperation agreements, promises of amnesty and a referendum, resignations and expulsions from the parties of dissatisfied. When forming the government, the separation of «Unitarians – separatists» was more important than the line «left – right». The development of shadow negotiations depended on the outcome of the vote on candidates for the post of Prime Minister – A. Nuñes Feijoo (People’s Party) and P. Sanchez Perez-Castejon (Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party). The victory of the Socialist candidate confirmed the growing role of regional parties and the problems of center-peripheral relations in the formation of the Spanish government. At the same time, it will not be easy for the government to implement the conditions for the election of P. Sanchez – an amnesty for the leaders of the Catalan secessionists and a referendum on the political status of Catalonia and will require a new round of shadow negotiations between the parties.

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