BarcelonaThe war to lead ERC enters its final phase. This Saturday officially begins the electoral campaign for the congress on November 30, the decisive fifteen days for the three candidacies that have managed to pass the endorsement filter (the minimum was 5% of the census, around 412 signatures). Militantà Decidim, the list led by Oriol Junqueras, is the one that has presented the most signatures, 2,577; New Esquerra Nacional, the project led by Xavier Godàs and supported by Marta Rovira, has delivered 1,500, while Foc Nou, whose candidate is Helena Solà, has collected around 500 endorsements – the party will announce the exact number this Saturday. Over the last few weeks, the candidacies have traveled the territory to explain their project and have tried to display the supports they have been recruiting. Who has Oriol Junqueras surrounded himself with? Has Marta Rovira been involved in Xavier Godàs’ campaign? What is Foc Nou’s cover letter?
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Since the congress was convened in May, the dilemma that the party has mainly faced is whether a leadership renewal was needed or not. The candidacy of Oriol Junqueras is the only one that advocates that the leader of the party until a few months ago stands for re-election, while the rest of the candidacies favor a change of face at the head of the party, each with their own nuances. To defend your thesis, each candidacy will be based on figures of greater or lesser weight.
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Oriol Junqueras has placed four names at the top of his executive proposal: Elisenda Alamany, spokesperson for the ERC municipal group in Barcelona; Diana Riba, MEP; Arés Tubau, former councilor of Rubí, and Oriol López, former councilor of Mollet and until now deputy general secretary for internal coordination of Esquerra. Alongside him there are also other figures who support and drive his project such as the former president of the Port of Barcelona, Lluís Salvadó.
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The “top knob” of Nova Esquerra Nacional, apart from Xavier Godàs as candidate for president, is made up of former deputy Alba Camps; the current vice-president of the Parliament, Raquel Sans, and the congresswoman Teresa Jordà. The candidacy has also received the explicit support of the general secretary of the party, Marta Rovira, and the former president Pere Aragonès – they participated in the event on October 19 in Barcelona -, in addition to a large number of former government advisers , such as Laura Vilagrà, Anna Simó, David Mascort, Manel Balcells or Meritxell Serret (who is also part of the candidacy). During the next few days, both Rovira and some former councilors will also participate in the meetings with the militancy that has prepared the candidacy.
Helena Solà, the Foc Nou candidate, is accompanied by ex-councillor Alfred Bosch, promoter of the candidacy; the councilor in Sabadell Gabriel Fernández; the ex-deputy Jordi Orobitg, and the councilor in Matadepera Anna Piñol. This is a third way in which their value, they defend, goes through a profound change: they emphasize that of the members they present to be part of the ERC executive, there is none who has been part of it , unlike the other two lists. Of the thirty-person executive proposal presented by Militancia Decidim and Nova Esquerra Nacional, in the first candidacy there are ten people who are in the current management, while in the second case, there are seven.
Support to the Parliament, Congress, Senate and Eurochamber
How are supports distributed in the Parliament, the Congress, the Senate and the Eurochamber? In the Catalan chamber, Junqueras is in the minority: of the twenty deputies, there are seven who have sided with him, while there are at least nine who support Nova Esquerra Nacional. There are also four who have adopted a neutral role or who have not wanted to take a public position: Carles Campuzano – who is not an ERC militant–, Najat Driouech, Mar Besses – the parliamentarian who represents the Jovent Republican– and Jordi vines Of the seven who vote for Junqueras, there are former councilors Joan Ignasi Elena and Ester Capella, or the deputy spokesperson Jordi Albert and the secretary of the table Juli Fernàndez. They are joined by Ana Balsera, Albert Salvadó and Josep Vidal. Capella is one of the new supports that Junqueras has received, because she was one of the names that signed the manifesto that called for a renewal of the party leadership. On the other hand, the president of the parliamentary group, Josep Maria Jové, and spokeswomen Marta Vilalta and Laura Vilagrà are with Xavier Godàs, in addition to Irene Aragonès, Montse Bergés, Laia Cañigueral, Tània Verge, Raquel Sans and Ruben Wagensberg – the last two are part of the candidacy–.
In Congress the situation is the opposite. Junqueras has the support of four of the seven deputies, including the speaker, Gabriel Rufián, as well as Jordi Salvador, Inés Granollers and Etna Estrems. Teresa Jordà, the group’s number two, is one of the visible faces of New Esquerra Nacional, whose candidacy is also supported by deputy Pilar Vallugera. Francesc-Marc Álvaro is not an ERC militant and has adopted a neutral role. In the Senate, the scenario is a tie: of the four senators, two vote for Junqueras –Laura Castel and Jordi Gaseni–, and two for Godàs –Sara Bailac and Joan Queralt–. In the Eurochamber, the only republican deputy is Diana Riba, who is part of Junqueras’ candidacy. Foc Nou has no representative in these chambers who gives them explicit support, but they use precisely this fact to present themselves as the candidacy of “change”.
Municipal world and historical leaders
All the candidates have wanted to play the municipalist card to defend that their projects benefit from this experience. Junqueras is supported by mayors such as Sant Andreu de la Barca, Marc Giribet; the one from Amposta, Adam Tomàs, or until a few weeks ago the mayor of Sant Julià de Ramis, Marc Puigtió; but he has also recruited the support of Patrícia Gomà, the person who faced Eva Baró – close to Junqueras – in Barcelona a year ago to lead the federation. At that time, Gomà was the one who gave the first pulse to Junkerism. In the territory, New Esquerra Nacional has received the support of several elected officials such as the mayor of Manresa, Marc Aloy, the largest municipality where the Republicans govern; Carme Ferrer, mayoress of Senan (Priorat), or the mayor of Martorelles, Marc Candela. Foc Nou also exhibits municipalist support and points out that the Tarragona council group endorses them almost en bloc – they are part of the list of councilors like Xavi Puig–. The candidacy of Helena Solà has also received the support of the former mayor of Lleida Miquel Pueyo and the former deputy Miquel Àngel Estradé.
Which side has the old guard of the party taken? The New National Left has the support of many historical leaders. This has been explained by Joan Puigcercós, Ernest Benach, Joan Ridao, Xavier Vendrell, Joan Manuel Tresserras or Marina Llansana; while Junqueras has secured the endorsement of ex-deputy Joan Tardà and is also supported by ex-Councillor for Foreign Affairs Bernat Solé. Support has also been distributed among those retaliated against who were in prison: Carme Forcadell and Dolors Bassa have sided with Nova Esquerra Nacional (although Bassa signed the endorsement for Foc Nou) and Raül Romeva he is with Junqueras.
With the supports distributed, the last word will now be given to the more than 8,000 militants who will be able to vote on November 30. During these two weeks of campaigning, they will be able to see how the candidates for the presidency and general secretary of the party confront their proposals in two debates. On November 24, those who propose themselves as general secretaries will do so – Elisenda Alamany, Alba Camps and Alfred Bosch – will face off, while the presidential candidates – Oriol Junqueras, Xavier Godàs and Helena Solà – will sit together in headquarters on Calle Calabria on November 26.
After months of internal war, in which the divorce of the tandem between Oriol Junqueras and Marta Rovira has been certified and the battle has worsened following the scandal of the posters against the Maragalls, the militancy will have to decide who it wants to pilot the match from December 1. This as long as the winning candidacy exceeds 50% of the votes, because, if it does not, the voting will have to be repeated in a second round in which the militancy will have to choose between the two lists with the most votes – Xavier Godàs opened the takes this week to ally with Foc Nou to defeat Junqueras–. Be that as it may, whoever is tasked with leading Esquerra will find themselves with a completely divided party that they will have to mend if they are to revive it after four consecutive electoral defeats and an internal war that has been one of the bloodiest in the history of the training
