Vox sticks with Spain's PP despite voting against chat control

Vox sticks with Spain's PP despite voting against chat control

The vote on chat control has laid bare the political schizophrenia of the Spanish right. The PP voted in favour of the measure – a system for mass scrutiny of communications – while Vox opposed it. But far from sealing a split, Abascal's party continues to govern alongside the conservatives in several Spanish regions. No ultimatum, no door slammed: the coalition stands.

The PSOE, for its part, also backed the measure. The official narrative sold it as a triumph for security. Those who trinc the debate point to the hypocrisy of the left, which for years denounced indiscriminate spying and now endorses similar tools. Irene Montero's absence from the vote – on holiday? – added a farcical touch.

Coherence or party interests?

What is striking is not that the PP and PSOE agree, but that Vox has not made this disagreement a red line. The party has threatened to bring down governments over minor issues, yet here it prefers silence. The most cynical reading is that regional power matters more than principles. The least cynical, that chat control is not the bogeyman it is made out to be. Either way, Vox's electorate – the one demanding purity – will probably not let it slide.

The cost-benefit calculation leaves the party in an awkward position: either swallow it and fade into the background, or stand firm and lose real share of power. So far, the scales tip towards the first option. But the parliamentary term is long, and upcoming plenary sessions will offer more chances to measure the gap between rhetoric and deeds.