elections

The campaign for the upcoming Spanish elections has begun. On the 20^th of December Spaniards will elect 558 of the 616 seats in Spanish bicameral Parliament: 350 for the Spanish Parliament and 208 for the Senate. The strategy regarding Catalonia and its push for independence is set to be a crucial battlefield - many parties have expressed their support or open opposition to Catalonia's aspirations and the reform of the Spanish Constitution to improve Spain's current territorial organisation has also been the focus of the main parties' programmes. Besides this debate, the upcoming elections are set to mark the end of the two-party system, represented by People's Party (PP) and Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE), which have alternated in the Spanish government since 1982. Anti-Catalan nationalism ‘Ciutadans’ and alternative left ‘Podemos’ have already shown their force and popular support in the past European, Regional and Local elections and are likely to burst into the Spanish Parliament, forcing the main parties to reach agreements. 

The members of pro-independence radical left CUP voted against Artur Mas' candidacy for Catalan President with 823 votes out of 1,300 and urged cross-party list 'Junts Pel Sí' to make a move. "If there are elections in March it will be because 'Junts Pel Sí' won't have made the move that people are asking for" stated CUP's number two, Anna Gabriel, and reinforced the party's will "to stay at the negotiations table". CUP's position is now reinforced by their base and their strategy is still to launch an action plan against social poverty, break with the Spanish state, start a constitutive process and choose "an alternative to Mas", as pointed out by CUP MP Benet Salellas. Therefore, they rejected the cross-party list 'Junts Pel Sí' proposal to create a "college presidency" with Mas leading the government together with three "government commissions" with delegated competences.

In order to outline their support for the celebration of a referendum in Catalonia, Spanish alternative left Podemos added a paragraph to its political programme for the upcoming 20-D Spanish elections. Initially, the text didn’t mention the word “referendum”and just referred to “the rights of the autonomic governments to hold consultations amongst the citizens regarding the territorial fitting”. This is still stated in the programme but they have now made clear their commitment to “promote the celebration of a referendum with legal guarantees in Catalonia so that the citizens could choose the kind of territorial relationship that they would like to establish with Spain”. The programme also outlines the party’s will to evaluate and debate the experiences of the UK and Scotland and Canada and Quebec.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has started his round of meetings with Spanish socialist party PSOE, Anti-Catalan nationalism ‘Ciutadans’, alternative left ‘Podemos’ and Spanish left IU, the main political forces running in the 20-D Spanish elections. The aim of these meetings was to set a common programme to deal with Catalonia’s push for independence, which is outstanding as the centre of the electoral campaign. “I take responsibility for leading the answer to this defiance”stated Rajoy and added that the Spanish State “has by far enough mechanisms to successfully face this situation”. Rajoy assured that during these meetings with the other political parties he asked his interlocutors to “trust”these mechanisms and avoid “unproductive debates”on such matters, referring to the possible application of article 155 of the Spanish Constitution, suggested by Ciutadans’leader Albert Rivera, which would imply the suspension of Catalonia’s autonomy. 

The winning pro-independence cross-party list 'Junts Pel Sí''s formula won't be repeated in the 20^th of December Spanish elections. Liberal CDC and left-wing ERC, the two main political forces responsible for 'Junts Pel Sí', consider the referendum already celebrated in the 27-S elections and bid to enhance the pro-independence base by running in the Spanish elections separately. ERC's general secretary, Marta Rovira, and CDC general coordinator, Josep Rull, aim to fill the space left by radical left CUP, their main partner in the Catalan government, who won't run in the Spanish elections. Rovira and Rull promised to work together in order to make the 27-S democratic mandate effective. To prove this, they announced the writing of a common manifesto which will support the Catalan government's roadmap towards independence. 

Two weeks after the 27-S Catalan elections, the debate on who will be the next President is still bogged down. Pro-independence unitary list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ (‘Together For Yes’), which won the elections but didn’t get an absolute majority, confirmed that Artur Mas was their candidate to run for President. However, radical left CUP have repeatedly stated that they won’t instate Mas as President, as an independent Catalonia needs a leader “who can’t be identified with cuts, corruption and privatisations”. “Now we are extremely focused on the content, the what, when, and how” stated CUP’s leader Antonio Baños, in an interview with 'Catalunya Ràdio'. Simultaneously, in another radio interview, ‘Junts Pel Sí’ lead member Raül Romeva assured that he “agrees with almost everything” regarding CUP’s roadmap towards independence and insisted that choosing a candidate to be President “is now secondary”.

196,062 Catalans abroad are registered to vote but only 14,781 could effectively do so in the 27-S Catalan elections. Too many agents involved in a complex and long process deprived them of exercising their democratic right. “The Spanish State can’t ignore such a violation of a basic and fundamental right” stated the Catalan Minister for Public Administration, Meritxell Borràs, who lamented that nearly “7,000 votes that were sent on time couldn’t reach their destination”. On Wednesday the ballots that did arrive in Catalonia on time showed 63% of Catalans living abroad voted in support of independence. Although cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ (‘Together for Yes’) was the most voted, with 7,894 votes, it only maintains its 62 seats in the Catalan Parliament and still requires radical left pro-independence CUP in order to instate Mas as President, which the radical party refuses to do. 

Pro-independence parties have won an overall majority in the Catalan election. The main pro-independence coalition, ‘Junts pel Sí’ (‘Together for Yes’) obtained 39.6% of vote and won 62, while the far-left pro-independence CUP secured 10 members of parliament. Together, they have an overall majority of 72 MPs in the 135-seats Catalan Parliament. President Mas, who ran fourth on the list, highlighted the plebiscitary nature of the elections and demanded “respect” for “the victory of Catalonia, the victory of yes”. Turnout in the election has hit a record high, with 77.4%.

The Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy offered “dialogue and negotiation” to the new Catalan government that would form after the 27-S elections, but warned that this “loyalty” would be subject to legality and “always within the law”. He emphasised that if the Catalan authorities “are planning to break the law and make declarations that contradict the Spanish Constitution and the Catalan Statute of Autonomy” Spain will fulfil its duty and make sure that “the law is adhered to”. Meanwhile, former Spanish Prime Minister José María Aznar has blamed Rajoy for leading the PP into “the worst possible scenario”. In a communicate published through the FAES foundation, the PP’s think tank over which he presides, Aznar stated that the PP “can’t ignore” the “the fifth warning” that Catalans have sent to the party.

The winning coalition in the 27-S elections, pro-independence unitary list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ insisted that their candidate to run for President of the Catalan Government is Artur Mas. Mas himself stated that what matters now “is the roadmap”and not who is the candidate for President. He addressed this warning to radical left pro-independence CUP, which would bring an absolute majority for pro-independence forces in the Parliament if they join ‘Junts Pel Sí’ but whom refuse to instate Artur Mas as Catalan President. “Now we have a shared responsibility” assured Mas and highlighted that “the priority” was to know if the 72 MPS who favour independence would be able to work together.

“The EC does not comment on regional elections” stated EC spokesperson Margaritis Schinas. He added that the EC won’t express “a position” regarding the 27-S results in Catalonia, which it considers “a domestic issue for Spain”.The EC spokesperson confirmed that EC President Jean-Claude Juncker “was informed” of the election results but that he “didn’t have any immediate contact” to evaluate them with the Spanish nor the Catalan governments. “I have nothing else to say” stated Schinas, who denied any consideration of whether the EU should promote dialogue between Madrid and Barcelona. However, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Anne Brasseur, stated at a press conference that “the vote of the people of Catalonia must be respected” and added that “there must be dialogue from both sides”.

Catalans “have shown that they are a plural society” in the face of “uniformity”, declared sources from the Spanish Government to CNA. Despite the ‘Junts Pel Sí’ victory in the 27-S elections, Mariano Rajoy’s team considers Artur Mas to have “failed” as he “didn’t achieve in votes nor in seats Catalan society’s support” for his “defiance”. The Conservative People’s Party (PP) didn’t comment on the record participation, which is the highest in the history of the Autonomous Elections. 

The figure is almost 7 points higher than it was at the same hour, 18.00 (CET), on the day of the 2012 elections and it has grown in the four regions in Catalonia, according to official data published by the Catalan Government. The region with the highest rate of participation so far is still Girona, with more than 65.3% and the least Lleida with 61%. The participation in Barcelona is 63.2% and in Tarragona is 61,8%, with the highest growth; more than 8 points higher than in 2012. 

The figure is 5.7% higher than it was at the same hour, 13.00 (CET), on the day of the 2012 elections, according to official data published by the Catalan Government. The region with the highest rate of participation so far is Girona, with more than 38%, followed by the Tarragona region with 35.53%, Barcelona with 34.7% and Lleida with 33.8%. The regions which have registered the highest increase in participation so far, compared to the 2012 elections, are Tarragona and Lleida, with a rise of 7.3%.