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The rise of social media controversy-monger Alvise Pérez: How did Se Acabó La Fiesta emerge as an electoral dark horse?
On June 9, 2024, Spain held a one-day European Parliament election, attracting global attention. The election is to elect the 10th European Parliament, and all 61 seats in Spain are up for election. Most notable was the right-wing party Se Acabó La Fiesta, led by social media controversialist Alvise Pérez, which defied predictions and emerged as a dark horse in the election.
The election resulted in a victory for the People's Party (PP), which, although failing to achieve the predicted heroic victory, ultimately won 22 seats with 34.2% of the vote, an increase of 9 seats from 2019.
In contrast, the ruling Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) won the first general election, although its heavily promoted Deputy Prime Minister Teresa Ribera remained its lead candidate. 30.2% of the votes, a slight decrease from 2019, when it lost one seat to 20 seats. The far-right Vox party took advantage of the situation and increased its vote share to nearly 10%.
Left-wing votes were split between Yolanda Díaz's Sumar coalition and former minister Irene Montero's Podemos, ultimately leading to a decline in support for both parties.
The real surprise of the election came from Alvise Pérez's Se Acabó La Fiesta, an emerging party that attracted a large number of voters with its unique stance in sixth place. Throughout the election, the left-wing nationalist Ahora Repúblicas roughly maintained its 2019 seat and vote count, while Carles Puigdemont's Junts UE and CEUS saw dramatic drops in support. What is most shocking is that the Civic Party (Cs), which was once very popular, collapsed to 0.7% in this election and failed to win any seats.
In the aftermath of the election, Yolanda Díaz announced her resignation as leader of the Sumar party after her coalition did not perform as well as expected, and Vox joined the new political group founded by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
Election system
According to the Lisbon Treaty and the 2023 Council Decision, Spain is allocated 61 Members of the European Parliament. The elections are based on universal suffrage and all Spanish nationals and non-European citizens legally residing in Spain who are 18 years of age or older can vote. A 2022 revision of the electoral law abolished the "request to vote" system that required an advance application for a vote, which had been criticized for leading to a significant drop in voter turnout among Spanish voters abroad.
All seats are elected using D'Hondt's rule and closed-list proportional representation, with no applicable electoral thresholds, and a single-member district system with multi-member constituencies. This electoral method results in an election with an effective threshold based on the distribution of votes among constituencies and candidates.
Election and Debate
In this election, the political parties actively carried out campaign activities. Social media has become the main channel for many voters to obtain information, and Alvise Pérez's Se Acabó La Fiesta uses its social media platform to promote its policies and ideas. The debates between the candidates attracted a great deal of public attention, and voters responded differently to their performances.
Public Response and Future Outlook
The rise of Alvise Pérez has not only sparked heated debate in the political arena, but has also made people rethink the influence of social media in contemporary politics. Many analysts believe this is the beginning of a new era in politics, where voters’ choices are increasingly likely to be driven by social media. How fiercely competitive will future elections be?
The results of this election are a profound lesson for all political parties. Voters’ opinions and expectations change over time, and political leaders must adapt if they want to maintain their advantage. How will Se Acabó La Fiesta continue to expand its influence in the future?
Will we see more social media disputants entering politics after this election, and will this new form of electoral competition become a regular phenomenon in the future?
