Madrid riot police keep protesters away from far-right rally

<p>MADRID &mdash; Spanish police used batons on Wednesday to prevent protesters from clashing with supporters of the far-right Vox party, which chose to hold a campaign rally in a traditional left-wing Madrid district. </p>
<p>Scuffles started when the national leader of Vox, Santiago Abascal, approached a crowd gathered to protest the party rally in the working-class Vallecas neighborhood. </p>
<p>Riot police charged several hundred protesters to keep them away from Abascal and other members of his party, that’s campaigning ahead of the May 4 regional elections in the area that includes the Spanish capital.</p>
<p>Vox is hoping to get enough support to prove key to the conservative Popular Party staying in power in the powerful region.</p>
<p>Vox erupted into Spain’s national parliament in 2019. Its 52 parliament members makes it the third-largest party in the 350-seat legislature. It has also gained ground in several regional legislatures.</p>
<p>The party supports rolling back the devolution of power to Spain’s regional governments. It blasts unauthorized immigration and feminists, and wants to roll back gender violence laws. </p>