Galician Nationalism: Opportunities, Political Mobilization, and Electoral Coordination

Résumé 0

This article seeks to understand how the Galician nationalist movement (BNG) succeeded in overcoming its political marginality after the Spanish transition to democracy and today disputes with the Socialist party the second position in the Galician party System. Beyond the historical preconditions and the political opportunities of the creation of the autonomous communities in Spain, the authors stress the organisational and strategic capacities of nationalist actors. The ongoing federalisation of Spain provides an open political opportunity structure, but other factors need to be taken into account, such as organisation, charismatic leadership and the repertoire of mobilisation, especially the moderation of nationalist demands. The article analysis specifically: (i) the successful strategy of ideological moderation and reframing during the 1990s and (ii) the progressive electoral coordination of most pre-existing nationalist parties around the BNG.