Spanish Socialist Workers' Party

The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (Spanish: Partido Socialista Obrero Español [paɾˈtiðo soθjaˈlista oˈβɾeɾo espaˈɲol] ^ⓘ, PSOE [peˈsoe] ^ⓘ) is a social democratic political party in Spain. The PSOE has been in government longer than any other political party in modern democratic Spain: from 1982 to 1996 under Felipe González, 2004 to 2011 under José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, and since 2018 under Pedro Sánchez.

The PSOE was founded in 1879, making it the oldest party currently active in Spain. The PSOE played a key role during the Second Spanish Republic, being part of the coalition government from 1931 to 1933 and 1936 to 1939, when the republic was defeated in the Spanish Civil War. The party was then banned under the Francoist dictatorship and its members and leaders were persecuted or exiled; the ban was only lifted in 1977 in the transition to democracy. Historically Marxist, it abandoned the ideology in 1979. Like most mainstream Spanish political organizations since the mid–1980s, the PSOE has been considered by experts to have embraced a positive outlook towards European integration.

The PSOE has historically had strong ties with the General Union of Workers (UGT), a major Spanish trade union. For a couple of decades, UGT membership was a requirement for PSOE membership. However, since the 1980s the UGT has frequently criticised the economic policies of the PSOE, even calling for general strikes against the PSOE governments on 14 December 1988, 28 May 1992, 27 January 1994 and 29 September 2010, jointly with the Workers' Commissions, another major trade union in Spain. Both the trade unions and the left have often criticised the economic policies of the PSOE for their economically liberal nature. They have denounced policies including deregulation and the increase in precarious and temporary work, cuts in unemployment and retirement benefits, and the privatisation of large state-owned organisations and public services. The PSOE has traditionally attracted a higher share of female voters than its rivals. Same-sex marriage and adoption were legalised in 2005 under the Zapatero Government and, more recently, a transgender rights bill was passed to allow more freedom in regards to gender identity.

The PSOE is a member of the Party of European Socialists, Progressive Alliance and the Socialist International. The PSOE's 21 Members of the European Parliament sit in the Socialists and Democrats European parliamentary group.