The Popular Front Government: Reforms and Political Tension (1936)

The Popular Front Government

Following the election results, Manuel Azaña was named President of the Republic. The government faced significant legislative discrepancies with the right, as well as military and ideological opposition. The administration was formed by Republican ministers and supported by the Socialists.

Reforms and Social Policies

Once in power, the government resumed the reform process that had been suspended in 1934, including several amendments:

• Amnesty: Approximately 30,000 political prisoners were released.
• Labor Relations: Companies were forced to reinstate workers dismissed after the 1934 strikes.
• Land Reform: A draft was presented to return community assets to municipalities and resume farmer settlements.
• Autonomy: The government relaunched the autonomy process, initiating negotiations for new Statutes for the Basque Country and Galicia.

Military and Regional Governance

To mitigate potential threats, the government moved military leaders involved in plots to other regions: Franco was sent to the Canary Islands and Mola to Navarre, though the government did not dare to dismiss them entirely.

On February 29, the parliament confirmed Lluis Companys as President of the Generalitat. The government restored the Statute of Autonomy and the Law of Cultivation Contracts. This allowed tenant farmers to access land under specific conditions; while landowners were dissatisfied, farmers and rabassaires (vineyard workers) supported the measure.

Political Climate and Rising Conflict

By the spring of 1936, the struggle between the left and right intensified. While moderate sectors hoped for stability, the political climate grew increasingly volatile:

Sources of Tension

• Conservatives and Landowners: Opposed land reform measures.
• Catholic Church: Opposed the state due to its anticlerical stance.
• Labor Unrest: Left-wing parties and trade unions launched strikes and land occupations.
• Radicalization: Anarchists advocated for a socialist revolution, while the sector led by Largo Caballero also sought radical solutions.
• The Falange: Contributed to a climate of civil confrontation through street violence and armed patrols against leftist leaders.

Clashes between militants of the left and right persisted from February to July 1936. Among conservative sectors of society, the conviction grew that a military coup was the only remaining solution.