Word: socialists
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That speech came as a climax to a late night vigil at Socialist election headquarters in Madrid's Palace Hotel. A crowd of some 4,000 applauded as results were flashed on a giant 30-ft. color-television screen outside the hotel. Party workers sent up occasional chants of "Felipe, Presidentel Felipe, Presidente!" while other supporters converged on the capital's main square, singing, dancing and hugging one another. One grizzled workingman with a red bandanna on his neck embraced a well-wisher with tears in his eyes and announced hoarsely, "España socialista!" Overall, however...
...victory by force. One aborted coup plot had been uncovered early last month, and rumors of other such attempts abounded throughout the campaign. Some analysts continued to believe that army hard-liners might try to stage an uprising during the delicate transition period by to the formation of a Socialist government next month...
Another possible reason for the Socialists' sobriety was the realization that their victory had not solved the formidable array of problems facing the country. Among them: a recession-bound economy that has 16% unemployment and 12% inflation, the continuing threat of Basque terrorism and the bitter debates that are developing over Socialist promises to legalize abortion and to withdraw Spain from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization by referendum...
...Spanish election was closely watched in other international capitals, particularly since it came in the wake of Socialist victories in France, Greece and Sweden and seemed to some observers to suggest a leftward swing in Western European politics. Most analysts, however, saw it as part of a mixed trend in which widespread economic problems tended to work against incumbent governments (see following story...
González's tone of reasonableness was reflected in the Socialist electoral platform. Its main focus is a plan to fight unemployment by creating 200,000 jobs annually over the next four years. Unlike France's Socialist President François Mitterrand, González does not seek to make jobs through sweeping nationalizations. Indeed, the only segment of the economy proposed for state takeover is the electrical grid. Instead, the party calls for a tightly controlled state credit program to support small and medium-size business investment in depressed areas. In foreign policy, the P.S.O.E. platform...