(Bloomberg) -- Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias said he’s dropping his demand to be given a post in the next Spanish government, boosting Pedro Sanchez’s efforts to clinch a confirmation vote next week.
Iglesias said he doesn’t want to be an excuse for Sanchez not to strike a deal with his left-wing party. He said he still wants his party to control a number of ministries in a coalition government as a condition of its support for Sanchez’s Socialists.
Sanchez’s party emerged as the winner of April’s general elections but fell well short of a majority, leaving him needing to negotiate with Podemos and other smaller groups to get through the investiture process that starts in the parliament Monday.
“The Socialists say that the only stumbling block in the way of such a government is me,” Iglesias said in a video posted on Twitter. “My presence in the cabinet won’t be a problem."
Iglesias said he wants Podemos to have a number of ministerial jobs which is proportional to its share of the vote in April’s election.
Sanchez’s Socialists won twice as many votes as Podemos and its allies in the election, meaning Podemos is claiming one third of the ministerial posts. The previous Socialist administration comprised 18 ministries.