Monthly Archives: May 2016

Ciudadanos-Cs, the vanguard of cuñadismo

Politics, Spain

I’ve struggled in the past to properly describe Ciudadanos’ political philosophy. The refer to themselves as ‘liberals’ (which means something different in just about every country where it’s used). It’s true that they lack far-right policies but their spokesmen have expressed some pretty reactionary attitudes at times. And while it would be unquestionably wrong to call them fascists, they’re certainly good at signalling their values to people who don’t think Franco was that bad (something they learned from the PP).

But their latest spot, for next month’s elections, has thrown everything into focus. Cs represents, and speaks to, that most Spanish of political philosophies: el cuñadismo.

Because it’s Spain’s cuñados’ votes that the PP and Cs are really fighting for. The guys who come out with lines like “Por qué te quejas? Tú al menos tienes trabajo” or “Mucho protestar y luego bien que tienen iPhones” or “Bueno, esa es tu opinión”. Cuñadismo has finally been captured in a video clip so perfect, it almost hurts to watch.

And I’m not the only one who thinks so.