Broken trust

The state of Spanish politics is so bad, and public trust in its protagonists so low, that a quarter of young Spanish men would now prefer an authoritarian regime to democracy 'in some circumstances', writes Mark Nayler

Mark Nayler

Malaga

Friday, 6 September 2024, 17:09

The state of Spanish politics is so bad, and public trust in its protagonists so low, that a quarter of young Spanish men would now ... prefer an authoritarian regime to democracy 'in some circumstances'. That was the most eye-catching result in a poll recently conducted for El País and the SER radio network. The survey also revealed that 68.5% of Spaniards believe that democracy is deteriorating in Spain, and to a greater extent than the rest of the world (57.8%).

In a country that has only relatively recently emerged from a dictatorship, the first result is hugely significant. It is a damning verdict on the current Spanish government and the country's politicians in general. An authoritarian regime is one that demands blind obedience (and will enforce it if necessary) and has no respect for individual liberty - yet this is the type of government that 25.9% of Spanish men aged between 18 and 26 now want in some cases.

That's a crucial caveat, of course; but unfortunately the poll didn't ask respondents in what circumstances authoritarianism would be preferable to democracy. Surely even a faulty democratic system is better than an authoritarian regime, even if only for a few weeks or months? One thinks of Winston Churchill's remark that 'democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others'.

It's interesting to consider whether these respondents' views have been influenced by the closest thing they (and we) have experienced to authoritarian rule - namely government restrictions during the Covid pandemic. Perhaps one of the situations in which they think such a regime is temporarily permissible is a national emergency or crisis.

Another of the poll's key findings was that only half of Spaniards consider themselves represented by a political party. Although this partially explains why the majority think Spanish democracy is in decline, it's a surprising result: unlike in the US, for example, there's always a decent choice of parties to vote for in general elections (and there are plenty of those in Spain, too).

The poll also revealed the top three causes of decline of trust in Spanish democracy: corruption (51.8%), politicians breaking their promises (35.1%) and inequality before the law (29.6%). So, when applied to the current government: the Koldo case, the Catalan amnesty and... the Catalan amnesty again.

All three factors, of course, are also present in authoritarian regimes, and usually to a much greater extent than in democracies. Precisely because authoritarian governments are not accountable to their subjects, corruption flourishes, promises are meaningless and the law is merely another instrument of state control. The fact that one in four young Spanish men are starting to see such regimes as preferable to Spain's democratic system, even if only 'in some circumstances', should give politicians cause for serious reflection.

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