The parties integrated in Frente Amplio have decided this Monday to propose the former mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, as a candidate for the Presidency of the Government in the general elections on November 29, according to a statement they issued today.
At the same time, they have extended a formal invitation to Podemos to join this common project, emphasizing that it is "the time for all organizations to clearly express their willingness to contribute to unity," since "no one is surplus" in the future coalition.
The proposal has been agreed upon by Movimiento Sumar, Comuns, Más Madrid, and IU in a meeting held this afternoon. The movement comes after the unprecedented agreement reached between ERC and Podemos to run together in the elections in Catalonia, despite the continuous messages of collaboration sent by the formations representing the minority partner of the Government.
Reaction after Rufián's designation
The announcement also comes after the spokesperson for ERC in Congress, Gabriel Rufián, has been ratified as the head of the list for the independentist formation in the general elections, ignoring the invitation made by Colau herself to integrate into Frente Amplio and lead a project that sought to regroup the left.
The pact between ERC and Podemos has generated deep discomfort among the Comuns, who have accused Rufián of "doing everything possible" to fragment the left, in open contradiction to his discourse of unity in recent months.
In light of this scenario, the involved forces maintain that Colau is the person who can best assume leadership in the current political situation and, therefore, express their willingness for her to head their candidacy in the elections on November 29.
Thus, the four formations fulfill what they had already been hinting at in recent days, when they pointed out that the former leader of the Comuns was the most suitable option to lead this new space, especially in a campaign where housing occupies a central place on the agenda and due to her trajectory that combines social activism and experience in institutions.
However, the statement does not clarify in which constituency the former councilor of the Catalan capital would run, whether she would do so for Madrid —as is usual in the general elections— or if she would head the list for Barcelona, as Más Madrid proposed, which defended a tandem with the regional deputy Emilio Delgado, whom they have positioned as number one for the capital for the 29N.
Call to Podemos despite its pact with ERC
In parallel, Colau had recently expressed her willingness to lead the candidacy, although she subordinated it to the construction of a true broad front, which implied also integrating Podemos and other territorial allies.
In this line, the forces of the Broad Front now explicitly emphasize that Podemos is still invited to join the future coalition, insisting that the time has come for all organizations to express "clearly their willingness to contribute to unity."
The purples maintain a strong distance from the minority parties of the Government since the breakup at the end of 2023 and set as a condition for an agreement the holding of open primaries for the entire left, in which the former minister Irene Montero would participate, in order to choose the candidate for the Presidency.
Furthermore, the pact with ERC is interpreted as a sign that Podemos is exploring avenues of collaboration outside the Broad Front and has reiterated that, to break the "loop," the left-wing membership must choose its representatives on the lists on October 14 and 15.
Message to the rest of the territorial allies
In any case, the Broad Front emphasizes that its goal is to once again count on all the organizations that already converged in 2023 under the candidacy of Sumar, referring to Podemos, Compromís, Chunta Aragonesista, and Més per Mallorca, among other forces.
"We are facing a historic moment that demands responsibility, generosity, and putting the well-being of the people ahead of any other consideration. Unity is the best guarantee to stop PP and Vox, defend the rights won, and continue advancing in the transformation of our country," the four formations promoting this new political space assert.
Likewise, they emphasize that the mobilizations in defense of the right to housing have represented a "before and after" regarding this electoral call and that, for this reason, the Frente Amplio "also arises from the need for the left to be up to the challenge of this new cycle of mobilization and social struggle."
In the same way, they claim that a left is needed that "connects the experience of government with the strength of social mobilization." "It is the time for unity. It is the time of the Frente Amplio," they conclude in their statement.