International financial institutions and national politics: the case of Spain during the austerity period of 2011-2015

Abstract

It is indisputable that economics and politics are deeply interconnected. Talking about
“international interests” has become almost a truism in Spanish national politics to explain the
economic crisis. International financial institutions are often blamed, together with previous and
present governments, for the social consequences of austerity in the country, such as mass
unemployment, rising inequality, and the worsening of the welfare state, becoming highly
controversial actors. Using a combined qualitative and quantitative methodology, this research
focuses on the relationship between international financial institutions and national politics. By
doing this, it puts the focus on the public comments that have emanated from the IMF and the
ECB about Spain published by the media and its effects on two directions: voters and political
parties. Analyzing the likelihood of the impact of those statements opens a path to answering
the question of whether these organizations have not only an economic influence but a political
one. This is particularly relevant regarding the general election of 2015, which will be the first
after the appearance of a new anti-austerity political party and several coalitions of parties,
which are already ruling the main capitals of the country, and that could put in question the continuation of the austerity economic program, started by the government of the
Spanish Socialist Workers Party (Partido Socialista Obrero Español), continued under the
government of the conservative Popular Party (Partido Popular), and supported by the so-called
Troika (International Monetary Fund, European Central Bank, and European Commission).