Overview

• Vox leader Santiago Abascal formally notified the Royal Household that he would skip the authorities’ tribune and the Royal Palace reception on Spain’s National Day.
• He watched the military parade from Plaza de Colón among supporters and was filmed leaning out of a car roof to return cheers as he departed.
• In a letter to King Felipe VI, Abascal argued the ceremonies are used to whitewash a “corrupt and dangerous” government and vowed to avoid institutional events with the Cabinet except in parliamentary forums.
• PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo criticized the boycott, equating Vox’s absence with that of Bildu and independentists and saying those who stay away must explain it.
• The palace reception saw several notable absences, and Pedro Sánchez left early to travel to Egypt for a Gaza ceasefire signing, as coverage also noted polling that shows Vox gaining support among younger voters.