The election of February 1936

• The general election of 16th February 1936 led to the victory of the Popular Front, which gained 48% of the vote, 2% ahead of the total vote for the parties of the right.
• These election revealed the extent of the political divisions in Spain.
• Popular Front government initiated fresh reforms including:

  • restoration of Catalan autonomy
  • beginnings of draft legislation to give similar independence to the Basque country.
  • the resumption of agrarian and military reforms.
• R/W groups denounced these measures as an attack on the nation.
• R/W opposition to the new government was more radical than the opposition faced by the l/w government of 1931-32. Some groups on the right had rejected legal methods and were willing to achieve their aims by force.
• The extremist nature of some r/w groups become obvious during the February election.
• Prominent r/w engaged in a plot to prevent the Popular Front government from taking power.
• Gil-Robles put pressure on Manuel Portela Valladares, prime minister at the time of election, to proclaim martial law and declare the results of the February election invalid.
• Declaring any martial law would effectively pass power to the army.
• The plan failed, as senior generals did not believe the army was ready to take power, but the attempt was a clear indication of the seriousness of r/w opposition to Popular Front.
• In addition to the radicalisation of r/w leaders, extreme r/w groups attracted more members during the 1936 election campaign.
• There was a rise in Spaniards joining the Falange, a fascist group that explicitly advocated destroying democracy and creating a dictatorship backed by the military. The rise in membership of the Falange continued throughout 1936 - by July it had 40,000 members.
• R/W violence on the streets also increased from February, a clear sign that violence was becoming an increasingly central part of Spanish politics. Attacks on l/w politicians increased after the election. e.g. 16th March 1936 Largo Caballero's house was attacked.