Here for the duration
Sánchez names government with more women than men, professionals with proven expertise and obvious plans to see the legislature through to 2020
Pedro Sánchez has not designed a short-term government so it does not seem that there are general elections around the corner. That much is obvious from the cabinet the new man in charge named yesterday - which includes an unprecedented 11 women and only six men - sending a very clear message: the goal is to extend the legislature as far possible and, if possible, all the way through until 2020.
With only 85 seats, Sánchez has appointed as second in command, the new Minister of Equality, Carmen Calvo whose role will be not only to manage cabinet but to wend her way adroitly though the quagmire of the opposition parties and keep the government afloat.
Professionals, jurists, economists, experienced politicians, scientists are among those who have been charged with following Sánchez’s aim to modernise Spain and work for social reform.
Most notable in the cabinet composition is not that there are more women than men, but the fact that those women have been given most of the important portfolios. The former EU budget director Nadia Calviño takes Economy while Treasury goes to María Jesús Montero. Her job will be to administer a PP budget while working to convince a mainly hostile Senate to see things her way. A state prosecutor Dolores Delgado will be Minister of Justice, Margarita Robles, Defense, Carmen Montón, Health, and Magdalena Valerio Labour. The Catalan Merixell Batet has been given Public Administration which means she will be the direct pipeline to the Generalitat. Pep Borell, a seasoned veteran takes Foreign Affairs and former astronaut Pedro Duque will be the new science minister.