PSOE accepts Sánchez-Feijóo debate on 16 November and a four-way debate on 26 November

Socialists accept a one-on-one debate

The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) said on Thursday, 22 October, that it will take part in a face-to-face televised debate between Pedro Sánchez and Alberto Núñez Feijóo on Monday, 16 November, the first Monday of the official campaign. The date was first floated by the People's Party (PP), which had signalled its willingness since early October. The meeting would be hosted by a private broadcaster, as the two leaders' previous head-to-head before the July 2023 general election was on Antena 3, part of Atresmedia. The PP favours Mediaset for the 16 November debate, but the PSOE has not confirmed a channel.

The party framed debates as a duty owed to voters rather than a favour to either side.

“Debating is not a partisan concession, it is a democratic obligation to citizens.”

The Socialists also argued that electoral debates have gone ahead when the PSOE governs and have been blocked only when the PP was in government.

Four-way debate and the RTVE dispute

The PSOE also accepted an invitation from RTVE, the public broadcaster, to a four-candidate debate on Thursday, 26 November, three days before the 29 November election. The party wants that debate held on RTVE and rejects any veto of the public broadcaster, while stating that it will not exclude private channels. It asked the parties to agree a format among themselves and to broadcast the signal openly to all channels, as TVE has committed to do. The PSOE described two debates between the lead candidates as the minimum and said both are indispensable, so its participation in one depends on the other. The PP prefers that the four-way debate take place on Atresmedia, and it has accepted the RTVE spokespeople's debate proposed for 23 November.

Broadcasters' competing proposals

Hours after Sánchez announced the general election for 29 November, Atresmedia, Mediaset, RTVE and La Séptima sent their proposed dates and formats to the parties. Atresmedia invited Sánchez and Feijóo to a face-to-face on 23 November and suggested a four-way debate with the leading candidates on 18 November, a proposal from the group that includes Antena 3 and laSexta. RTVE proposed a face-to-face between the two leading candidates on Tuesday, 17 November, a debate with the parliamentary spokespeople of the main groups on Monday, 23 November, and a four-way debate on 26 November. The PP has put forward up to three national formats, including a one-on-one, a four-way debate with Vox and the new Frente Amplio, and a spokespeople debate. Feijóo's party also said he will not give interviews to RTVE on programmes made by external production companies.

Calendar and the European Council

The four-way debate would fall on the same day as an extraordinary European Council convened for 26 and 27 November, where leaders of the 27 EU member states will discuss, among other items, the multiannual financial framework. The government has not said whether Sánchez will attend. One option would be a delegated vote, preferably to a fellow social democrat, as he did in June 2024 when he handed his vote to German chancellor Olaf Scholz after the death of his wife's father. Another would be a partial attendance, with Sánchez returning to Spain for the debate or travelling to Brussels only after it. The campaign's closing rally is scheduled for Friday, 27 November.

Points still open

The PSOE said it would attend as many electoral debates as possible in the coming weeks. In July 2023 Feijóo skipped the four-way debate on RTVE, arguing that the format was not the one he wanted, and the PSOE says he left the lectern empty. The party says that precedent should be followed, with a private-broadcaster face-to-face at the start of the campaign and a four-candidate debate on public television. No broadcaster has yet been confirmed for the 16 November debate, and the channel for the four-way debate remains disputed.