Spain appears headed for contentious political negotiations after snap elections failed to produce an outright victory for either the left or right. The conservative Partido Popular won the most parliamentary seats, though it received fewer votes than expected. Even if it formed an alliance with the far-right Vox party, the right-wing bloc would still fall short of a majority. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist party, which came in second, and the progressive Sumar party spun Sunday’s outcome as a victory. This is Prime Minister Sánchez speaking from Madrid.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez: “Those who proposed 'machismo,' a regression on rights and freedoms, have failed today. And the backward-looking bloc of the People’s Party with Vox has been defeated. There are many more of us who want Spain to continue moving forward than pursuing the path of regression.”

Pro-independence Catalan and Basque parties could now become kingmakers in the formation of Spain’s next government.