Spain’s socialist Government has suffered a catastrophic defeat in a regional election with the Right surging after Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez opened the door to giving 500,000 illegal migrants legal residency. The Mail has the story.

The Socialists won just 28 seats in the 109-seat regional parliament, down two from four years ago, in Sunday’s vote. 

After resounding defeats for the Left in three previous regional elections, the debacle in Andalusia will be particularly painful for Sanchez, whose candidate is his former deputy and ex-finance minister Maria Jesus Montero.

The defeat also follows recent losses for the Socialists in the regions of Extremadura, Aragon and Castile and León, increasing pressure on Sanchez before a general election expected in 2027.

In April, Sanchez approved plans to give legal status to half a million undocumented migrants, calling his decision an “act of justice” and a necessity for Spain. 

He claimed the controversial policy will help “build the rich, open and diverse Spain that we are and to which we aspire”.

But footage from shortly after the policy was announced showed migrants seeking legal status in Spain have been seen fighting each other while queuing. 

Individuals were waiting for hours at more than 400 locations across the country for appointments after submitting online applications.

Migrants were pictured in long queues outside registry offices in regions such as Catalonia, Andalucia and Madrid. 

In a desperate rush to finalise their paperwork, some migrants were waiting in line for hours or staying overnight to get their documents officially stamped.

Tensions rose as the crowds have overwhelmed registry offices and those seeking to confirm their legal status grew restless.

Sanchez has also been dealing with the fallout of the Iran war, which has seen a huge spike in the price of oil, gas and energy. 

This has also resulted in huge queues of people in airports, as airlines cancel more and more planes to and from Spain. 

And while Sanchez has built up his own status on the world stage by opposing US president Donald Trump’s war, as well as his push for Spain to spend more on NATO defence, Paco Camas, head of public opinion in Spain for polling firm Ipsos, told the FT that international issues had little to no effect on the outcome of the Andalusia race. 

Worth reading in full.