The general secretary of the PSOE of Cantabria, Pedro Casares, will run in the socialist primaries to designate the candidate for the Presidency of the regional Government, while the former leader of the party in the community, Pablo Zuloaga, has decided not to enter the internal contest.
Casares plans to hold a press conference this Thursday at 11:00 AM, where he will make his candidacy official, according to sources from the party in Cantabria who spoke to Europa Press.
In parallel, Zuloaga has shared a letter on his social media in which he announces that he will not take part in the process "to prevent the PSOE from looking inward again when it should be looking at Cantabria."
He explained that in recent weeks he has received "numerous" calls and messages from militants and colleagues encouraging him to take the step and register his candidacy to lead the PSOE of Cantabria's project in the next regional elections.
However, after much deliberation, he has chosen not to run in these primaries, not due to a lack of "enthusiasm, commitment, or desire to continue contributing," but because he understands that, in the current political context of the PSOE, his role should be "something else."
In his letter, he emphasizes that "I am not stepping aside to make the path easier for anyone; I am stepping aside to prevent the PSOE from looking inward again when it should be looking at Cantabria."
Furthermore, he warns that "internal processes too often leave wounds that are very difficult to heal afterward" and stresses that "primaries strengthen the party when they are not perceived as a power struggle or a race to incorporate last-minute affiliations to alter majorities."
In his opinion, the objective that the PSOE of Cantabria must set for itself again is "to continue growing and to continue being the majority reference for progressivism."
Zuloaga assures that he embraces Pedro Sánchez's "call" to strengthen the organization, regain citizens' trust, and focus on articulating a solid alternative against the right. "That objective requires generosity, broad-mindedness, and the ability to prioritize the collective interest over any personal aspiration," he states.
He concludes by saying that "I believe that the PSOE is essential for the future of Cantabria and I am convinced that the best contribution I can make at this moment is what I have always defended, even though it was denied to me: unity."
Calendar and requirements for the socialist primaries
The PSOE will hold primaries on July 19 to choose its candidates for the Presidency of the Government of Cantabria and the Mayoralties of Santander and Torrelavega.
The deadline to register pre-candidacies, both for the regional leadership and for the municipal elections in Santander and Torrelavega, will open between July 2 and 3. The proclamation of pre-candidacies, if there is more than one aspiring person, will take place on July 3, and the collection of endorsements necessary to be a candidate will take place from July 4 to 11.
To be eligible to lead the list in the regional elections, it will be necessary to gather a minimum of 12% and a maximum of 15% of endorsements from the entire membership, direct affiliation, and members of Juventudes Socialistas de Cantabria.
In the case of the primaries to lead the municipal candidacies of Santander and Torrelavega, a minimum of 15% and a maximum of 20% of endorsements will be required.
Once the period for collecting support has closed, the provisional proclamation of candidates will take place on July 11. The internal information campaign will take place from July 12 to 18, and the primary vote will be held on Sunday, July 19.
In this context, the general secretary of the PSOE of Santander and spokesperson for the Socialist Municipal Group, Daniel Fernández, has already announced that he will participate in the process to be designated candidate of his party for the Mayoralty of the Cantabrian capital in the 2027 elections, a step he is taking because he "is not content with the decrepitude to which the PP is leading it".