To his credit, Mr Aznar stuck to his promise to step down after two terms.
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King Juan Carlos and Spain's conservative prime minister, Jose Maria Aznar, both sent congratulatory telegrams.
Pollsters suggest that more of Spain's younger voters are likely to vote for Mr Aznar.
Still, Aznar also claimed that millions of Spaniards silently support his position on the war.
Public opinion backed the protesters, and as July ended, Jose Maria Aznar's government surrendered.
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The local elections were widely seen as a referendum on Aznar and his conservative government.
Actually, Mr Aznar gets along better with the Basque Nationalists than their angry words suggest.
Such comparisons, however, infuriate conservatives in Spain, who have chided Mr Aznar for kowtowing to Morocco.
But many Spaniards still compare Mr Aznar unfavourably with Felipe Gonzalez, his Socialist forerunner.
If they do well, the pressure on Mr Aznar to negotiate with them may get stronger.
Nurturing this informal club, launched by a previous Spanish government, is close to Mr Aznar's heart.
Underpinning Mr Aznar's message is a determination to move Spain up in the world.
This has led Mr Aznar to make some personnel changes designed to win over such doubters.
The ruling conservative Popular Party, led by Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, is leading in the polls.
Mr Aznar, meanwhile, confided to journalists that ultimately, yes, of course, he wanted Gibraltar to be Spanish.
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Mr Rodriguez Zapatero is likely to concentrate on those areas where Mr Aznar has been less successful.
Now he has to find some policies to distinguish himself and his party from Mr Aznar's lot.
Both men have spoken warmly of Britain's Tony Blair, who has a strong rapport with Mr Aznar.
That will not be easy, since Mr Aznar has successfully moved his party to the middle ground.
Mr Aznar has a parliamentary majority behind him for his assault on Batasuna, and most Spaniards back him.
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And when Mr Aznar came knocking on the door to power, he did not look like a middle-of-the-roader.
Why has Mr Pujol, who faces regional elections in Catalonia in 1999, decided to stick with Mr Aznar?
Mr Pujol can point to some gains that have flowed from his time in cahoots with Mr Aznar.
The cool Mr Aznar has a canny instinct for what it takes to keep a country on course.
Both Mr Aznar and the main opposition in national politics, the Socialists, have called for fresh regional elections.
So Mr Aznar has made it up with the Cuban leader, who forgivingly came to Madrid this week.
Some of Mr Rodriguez Zapatero's friends even complain these days that Mr Aznar is not liberalising fast enough.
Aznar blasted ETA's political arm, Herri Batasuna, calling them "accomplices" to the murder and asking Spaniards to isolate them.
Aznar vowed earlier on Monday to intensify the fight against ETA, which has killed nearly 800 people since 1968.
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