The new urban governance. The case of madrid: Between utopia, desire and reality

Abstract

The article analyzes the degree of success achieved by the municipal governments that came to power in Spain after the 2015 elections. In the face of corruption, vulnerability and the neo-liberal growth model that has prevailed since the mid-1980s, they promote a new model of urban governance based on the principles of efficiency, transparency, equity and citizen participation. Principles that laid the foundations of their electoral programs. After two years, it is time to assess if this desire has been fulfilled. Through the Madrid case study this paper will provide an overview of how local authorities are simultaneously addressing the dual pressures of reducing debt as well as restoring the welfare state and the trust of the population. We will explore to what extent they have managed to fulfill their promises, the main problems they have had, how the opposition perceives their urban policies and if they continue to have the support of associations and institutions that originally endorsed them.