Basque political parties have reacted to King Felipe VI's Christmas Eve speech with divided stances. EH Bildu chose silence, viewing him as an heir to Francoism, while the PNV criticized the lack of recognition for the Basque nation and the PP praised it as a lesson for democrats.
King Felipe VI's Christmas speech, delivered on December 24, 2025, from the Palacio Real in Madrid, has elicited varied reactions from Basque parties, aligning with national responses. For the third consecutive year, EH Bildu chose not to comment, posting on social media: “Las vascas y los vascos no tenemos rey. Gora Euskal Errepublika!”, and labeling Felipe VI as “the heir to the Francoist and reactionary legacy”.
The PNV's spokesperson in Congress, Maribel Vaquero, criticized the “absences” in the speech, such as the lack of “any recognition of the Basque nation or the Catalan nation”, and regretted no mention of “the attacks on the Basque language this year”. In statements in Donostia on December 25, Vaquero recalled the 50 years since Franco's death, who appointed his father head of state, and demanded declassification of documents on the dictatorship, the Transition, and events like the 23-F coup, the Zabalza case, or the March 3 bombing to strengthen democracy through truth.
From Podemos Euskadi, Organization Secretary Leticia Jiménez reproached in Vitoria that the king did not address the “Gaza genocide or rearmament”, despite speaking of human dignity. Jiménez described the monarchy as “antidemocratic and anti-egalitarian, heir to Francoism”, and criticized references to coexistence from a palace, detached from issues like the cost of living or housing, without holding institutions accountable.
In contrast, the PP Basque's general secretary, Esther Martínez, praised in Bilbao the message as a “magnificent lesson for any democrat”, appealing to citizen responsibility to defend democracy, freedom, and coexistence against populisms and sectarianism, recalling the Transition as an example of concord.
These responses reflect political polarization in the Basque Country, similar to national ones where PSOE and PP applauded the emphasis on constitutional values and coexistence, while Sumar and other government allies deemed it disappointing for ignoring inequalities and global conflicts.
