Podemos charge forces Europe's left to reconsider its options

Perhaps even more important than the Brexit referendum on June 23rd, is the Spanish general election which takes place three days later. The result could signify an even greater shift in the European Union's fortunes, should the radical leftist alliance Unidos Podemos gain a measure of power.

The alliance formed by Podemos, led by Pablo Iglesias, Izquierda Unida and other left-wing factions has surged into second place on 25.6%, ahead of the mainstream Spanish socialist party PSOE, led by Pedro Sánchez.

This movement from the centre-left to the extreme, according to the Guardian's Paul Mason, is "a story about a sickness built into the structure of the EU".

Just last year, Podemos took control of three major Spanish urban zones, namely Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia

Following "a property boom that had seen students quit university to become bricklayers," Spanish local banks hit the financial crisis hard. The resultant fireworks saw various corruption scandals on both sides of the political corridor.

"With 20% unemployment, falling real incomes and a youth generation forced into emigration or precarious work, the frustration exploded – at first on to the streets," writes Mason. This was the beginning of Podemos, a movement born out of the frustration felt by many at the failings of the traditional mechanisms of Spanish government which had been in place since the fall of General Francisco Franco.

The protest movement of 2011 evolved into a political party in 2014, with the combination of the unorganised street protesters and a generation of young, enthusiastic intellectuals and creatives who were to reject mainstream politics.

Just last year, Podemos took control of three major Spanish urban zones, namely Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia, using community coalitions to form a ticket containing changed attitudes to housing, human rights and corruption. Their agreement with Izquierda Unida has now given them the momentum to push into second place, perhaps coming to an agreement with PSOE and leaving unlikely ponytailed hero as prime minister.

Centre-left socialism is still in the anger-denial stage of grief

As Mason has aptly put it, "What faces PSOE leader Pedro Sánchez is the dilemma that faces UK politicians such as Yvette Cooper when responding to the Corbyn phenomenon."

"Centre-left socialism is still in the anger-denial stage of grief; it has advanced no theory of its own ineffectiveness and produced no substantial account of how it alienated large parts of its voting base."

The likes of Jeremy Corbyn and Pablo Iglesias have forced this lefty shift, and many will argue that the shift could turn into a full scale dumping of centre-left socialism in the near future.