When the socialist-communist government of Pedro Sánchez first announced he was going to begin the mass legalization of migrants in his country, his government claimed this would amount to 500,000 people. Now, twice as many people are being legalized than first claimed, and importantly for the rest of Europe, those migrants now have the right to freely move through the Schengen zone.
Due to his mass amnesty, The New York Times has now labeled Spain a "beacon of the global left."
In April, the socialist-communist government in Madrid first issue the decree, giving illegal migrants three months to submit their application.
According to the New York Times, more than 1 million applications had already been submitted by illegal immigrants.
Vox party leader Santiago Abascal has accused Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of taking the long-term move of naturalizing millions of foreigners to give himself and left-wing parties an electoral advantage in upcoming elections.
"Pedro Sánchez is willing to rob us of the next general elections by manipulating the census and handing out Spanish nationality," wrote Abascal. "And it is necessary for us to mobilize to prevent him, after everything he has stolen, from also stealing the elections from us."
Across Europe, conservative and right-wing politicians are reacting with shock to the huge legalization numbers Spain is now reporting.
"The decision to legalize them means that they will be able to move and settle freely in any place in Europe. Left-wing governments are bringing about the collapse of the Schengen Area and mocking the safety of Europeans. Not only does Spain, under the Migration Pact and in full accordance with the law, have the power to offload illegal immigrants to other countries, but it is also legalizing their stay," wrote Polish MEP Anna Bry?ka.
Sánchez has also been accused of passing the law with no democratic legitimacy. He announced that the Council of Ministers approved the decree initiating the implementation of this decision into the state legal order. Notably, this mass legalization was never formally voted in by parliament. Instead, Sánchez forced through an emergency decree.
The politician marketed the decree by talking about people who are in Spain in an "irregular situation" and noted that "again, I feel proud to be Spanish."
Calls to the European Commission demanding the immediate removal of Spain from the Schengen Area have been met with silence. Illegal arrivals enter Europe through this country every day.
As predicted and warned by both the Spanish opposition and many other political and media outlets, it turns out that there are many more newcomers willing to legalize their stay than the Spanish authorities announced.
The program on legalization of status stems from a citizens' initiative from 2024, which was supported by over 700,000 people. The measure was also supported by hundreds of organizations that describe themselves as humanitarian, along with business groups and the Catholic Church. To count on approval of the application, the newcomer must have been in Spain for at least five months and have no criminal record.