Catalans Cast Votes to Measure Strength of Separatist Movement and Relations with Spain
Catalonia Regional Election: Key Test for Separatists and Spanish Politics
Catalonia’s Regional Election to Shape Spain’s Political Landscape
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Catalonia is gearing up for a crucial regional election on Sunday that will have far-reaching implications for Spain’s national politics.
The ballot, which will see more than 5.7 million voters eligible to choose lawmakers for the regional parliament based in Barcelona, will serve as a litmus test for the strength of the separatist movement in the wealthy northeastern region and for the policies of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.
For more than a decade, separatists have held the regional government in Catalonia. However, recent polling data and the results of a national election in July suggest that support for secession has slightly waned since former regional president Carles Puigdemont led an unsuccessful breakaway attempt in 2017.
Despite being a fugitive from Spain’s laws and campaigning from southern France, Puigdemont is running in this election with hopes of returning to Spain once newly elected lawmakers convene to choose a regional president. He is banking on a contentious amnesty for him and other separatists to clear any legal troubles.
The amnesty is part of Sánchez’s efforts to ease tensions in Catalonia, which also included the pardoning of jailed high-profile separatists. A poor showing for Sánchez’s Socialist party in the election would be a setback for the leader of the minority coalition in Madrid.
Sánchez has been campaigning alongside Salvador Illa, the Socialist candidate who won the most votes in a 2021 regional election but was unable to prevent separatist Pere Aragonès from forming a government.
In addition to the traditional parties, an upstart pro-secession, far-right party called Catalan Alliance is hoping to secure parliamentary representation by railing against unauthorized immigration and the Spanish state.
With a total of nine parties in the running, no single party is expected to secure the 68 seats needed for an absolute majority in the chamber, making deal-making crucial in the post-election landscape.
The outcome of the Catalonia regional election will undoubtedly shape the future of Spain’s political landscape, with implications for both the region and the nation as a whole.
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