Vox has kicked off this Thursday the pre-campaign for the regional elections on May 17, in an event in which it has presented its candidate for the Presidency of the Junta, Manuel Gavira. It has done so in a square in the La Luz neighborhood, in Malaga, in an urban environment surrounded by residential buildings, with the presence of the party's national leadership and its regional candidate.
The meeting has served as presentation of the provincial lead candidates and as the political kick-off of the Andalusian campaign, in a context marked by electoral competition with the Popular Party.
Gavira accuses Moreno of a “permanent scam”
In his speech, Gavira has focused his words on direct criticism of the Andalusian president, Juanma Moreno, whom he has accused of representing political continuity with respect to previous stages.
Thus, Gavira has stated that the change promised in 2018 has not occurred and has accused the regional Government of maintaining, according to his approach, structures inherited from the previous political cycle.
Also, it has linked different social problems such as healthcare or housing to the management of regional policies, in line with the formation's discourse.
Abascal raises the tone against the Andalusian PP
For his part, the president of Vox, Santiago Abascal, has backed the Andalusian candidate during the event and has hardened the tone against the president of the Junta.
In his/her speech, he/she has questioned the political evolution of the Andalusian Government since 2018 and has framed his/her discourse in a broader criticism of the PP, whom he/she has placed as a continuity of the previous socialist model.
Abascal has also used symbolic references in his speech and has defended the need for a political change in Andalusia, in a speech aimed at mobilizing his electorate at the start of the campaign.
Vox's speech has revolved around several usual axes in its line, with special attention to issues such as healthcare, housing, and immigration.
The formation has linked these areas to the management of the autonomous Government and has stated that they are part of a general deterioration of public services, in line with its political strategy in previous campaigns.
Negotiations with the PP
The start of the campaign in Andalusia occurs in parallel to the negotiations that Vox is holding with the Popular Party in other autonomous communities, where their votes are decisive for the formation of governments such as Extremadura, Aragon and Castile and Leon.
Both parties have recognized advances in those conversations, although without closed agreements. Vox has reiterated that the negotiation must focus on the content of policies rather than on the configuration of positions, while the PP defends the need to guarantee stable governments in communities with right-wing majorities.
The start of the campaign in Andalusia thus occurs in a context of a double political plane: on the one hand, the regional electoral competition of May 17; and on the other, the open negotiations for the configuration of governments in different autonomous communities.