The president of Vox, Santiago Abascal, has assured this Sunday that, if his party governs, pensions "will be paid no matter what" and that access to housing "will be recovered no matter what and at any price." At the same time, he has insisted on asking his supporters to vote in person on the next November 29, except for those who have "no other remedy."
In a rally held in Estepona (Málaga), Abascal has accused the PSOE of having "invented and spread" that Vox intends to privatize pensions, a claim he has rejected. "We don't care about the model and the formula, but the pensions of the elderly who have earned them after working a lifetime will be paid at any price and no matter what. And the future of the young will also be recovered no matter what and at any price. And access to housing will be recovered the same way," he emphasized.
Before several hundred attendees (1,500, according to the organization), the leader of Vox has reiterated his message in favor of in-person voting. "To vote in person. Those who have no other remedy, should do it another way. It is not a distrust of the system, it is a distrust of Pedro Sánchez," he stressed, before accusing the president of the Government of having "stolen the elections in his own party."
Abascal has warned his followers to prepare for "lies, attempts at cheating, intimidation, and provocations," and has asked them not to respond to those attempts. In addition, he has urged them to talk with family and friends to try to convince those who, he said, "have thrown in the towel" or are considering abstaining.
"The dirtiest government in history" and criticism of the unions
The Vox leader has pointed out that the polls predicting an advance of his formation are "the main enemy" and has asked to distrust "any single poll." In his opinion, "there is no family gathering, there is no football match, there is no hobby, there is no excuse that is valid for all of us to go to the polls to recover the course of Spain," he maintains.
Abascal has insisted that "these are not normal elections" and has accused the Executive of being "the dirtiest government in the history of Spain." "We must be prepared for the worst, from calmness, from tranquility, without entering into any kind of danger," he pointed out.
He has also held the Government of Spain responsible for having starred in "eight years of criminal legislature" and for having led the citizens to "the greatest loss of purchasing power in the last half century" or "in the last century." In that line, he has attacked the unions, which he has reproached for having remained "silent as the dead" during that time.
"Remigration," immigration, and housing crisis
In another part of his speech, the leader of Vox has defended "remigration" and has explained that his party proposes it not because they do not like "people from outside" nor "out of hatred for those from outside," but "out of love for those from within." He has emphasized that political leaders have an obligation "first and foremost to the nationals."
In this context, he has thanked those who have come to Spain "at other times to work," collaborate with Spaniards, respect the laws, pay taxes, and respect the culture of the country. In his view, they too are harmed, just like Spaniards, by a phenomenon of "mass immigration" and "migratory invasion."
"Those who come illegally to Spain must be repatriated. Those who come to Spain to commit crimes must go back to their own country to serve their sentence. Criminals must be deported," Abascal has stated, who has also argued that those who have come "to live off social benefits that do not reach Spaniards" must "remigrate to their own country."
The president of Vox has linked these proposals to the housing market and has denounced that, under the Government of Pedro Sánchez, housing has become more expensive "by 74% and rent by 40%." He has pointed to the head of the Executive as "the direct culprit of evictions" and of "the housing crisis."
He has added that, in the last five years, five million people have entered Spain and "no housing has been built." "If the houses are the same, prices go up," he has argued, asking with whom Spaniards looking for housing compete if "everyone who enters illegally" is regularized "all at once."
Alongside "remigration," Abascal has presented as key points of Vox's response the "national priority" and "deregulation." Regarding the first, he has claimed that Spaniards should be "the first in their own homeland" and has defended that national priority implies that "the borders of Spain are defended at sea and on land" and that pending investments are made in Spain "and not in Morocco."
Regarding deregulation, he explained that Vox proposes to eliminate "administrative barriers" and "ideological and absurd laws" that, he said, raise costs and delay the construction of housing, the start-up of businesses, and other projects. He also denounced "fiscal abuse" and demanded that taxes be "the least" and be oriented "much more towards national interests."
Quero demands "to recover normality" in Spain
Before Abascal's intervention, the national spokesperson for Housing of Vox and former deputy for Málaga, Carlos H. Quero, explained that Vox's pre-campaign starts with the goal of "recovering a country and recovering the normality of a country." He placed the problem of housing, the increase in the cost of living, waiting lists in healthcare, the deterioration of public services, and insecurity as some of the factors that, he stated, condition the daily life of numerous citizens.
Quero described Spain as "an immense queue," "an immense saturation," and "an immense collapse," and lamented that what was once considered "normal" —having a job with which to buy a house, start a family, go to the doctor when needed, or have functioning services— has transformed into "a luxury."
The national spokesperson for Housing of Vox concluded that it is essential to give "a change of course" and assured that it is "the hour of the people of Vox" and "the hour of Santiago Abascal."