Leader of Spain’s conservatives loses his first bid to become prime minister and will try again

By PAUL WHITE and JOSEPH WILSON
Associated Press

MADRID (AP) — The leader of Spain’s conservatives has failed in his long-shot first bid to become the country’s next prime minister, falling short of the votes he needed in the Spanish parliament to form a government. As expected, Popular Party leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo on Wednesday came up four votes shy of the necessary absolute majority of 176 votes in his favor. Feijóo will try again on Friday when the bar is lowered and he needs only more “yes” than “no” votes from parliament’s 350 lawmakers. Spain’s July 23 national election left the parliament highly fragmented with its legislators spread between 11 different parties, setting the stage for a difficult path to power for any party.