Junqueras clears up doubts: Rufián will be the candidate of ERC on November 29

As of October 6, 2026, the internal primary process of Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC) to select its lead candidate for the general elections on November 29 is formally underway and is in the phase of submitting candidacies and collecting endorsements. The party leadership has activated the internal calendar and has made it clear that their political bet is for Gabriel Rufián to lead the list again, although Rufián himself has not yet publicly formalized his decision.

According to the secretary general and spokesperson of ERC, Elisenda Alamany, “this Monday the party's internal process begins” to prepare the candidacies for the Congress and the Senate. This start marks the beginning of the period for aspirants who want to contest the nomination to present themselves and gather the necessary endorsements from the membership and internal bodies. This entire stage is concentrated in the current week, given the very tight schedule imposed by a general election called with less than two months' notice.

The goal set by ERC is to have the complete candidacy — not only the lead candidate but the entire list for the Congress and, in parallel, those for the Senate — prepared and ratified by October 17. Until that date, the internal procedure includes several phases:

• Phase of submission of pre-candidacies and endorsements: in these days, potential aspirants must communicate their intention to run, gather support, and prove they meet the requirements established in the regulations approved by the Consell Nacional for the primaries to the general elections.
• Proclamation of candidacies: once the endorsement period closes, the internal organizing bodies verify which names surpass the required threshold and are proclaimed as candidates for the lead position.
• Voting (if there is more than one candidate): if only one valid candidacy is presented, that person would be designated without a vote. If there is more than one, the primary vote would take place before October 17, the date on which the party wants to close and ratify the lists.
• Ratification and registration: the winning candidacy and the complete lists must be endorsed by the leadership bodies and subsequently registered with the electoral boards within the legal deadlines.

In this context, the leadership has made a clear political bet on Gabriel Rufián. Alamany described him as “the best asset we have for this call” and emphasized that the party's intention is for him to be the lead candidate for the Congress again. Various press reports agree that the process is launched with this explicit preference but formally respecting that the final word belongs to the membership through the primaries if alternatives are presented.

For his part, Rufián's environment conveys that the ERC spokesperson in Congress is “reflecting and listening” before making a definitive decision about his role on November 29. The early call of the general elections, described in that environment as “hasty and irresponsible because the sum does not add up,” forces him to make a move in the coming days to align his own strategy with ERC's internal calendar and with movements in the alternative left space at the national level.

Another relevant piece of information about the status of the process is Oriol Junqueras's position. Alamany herself has ruled out that the president of ERC intends to lead the candidacy for the general elections, explaining that he has conveyed to her that his political goal is to be president of the Generalitat in the next Catalan cycle. This clears up a possible internal unknown and narrows the competition around the nomination for Congress.

In summary, today the process in ERC is underway, in the initial phase of submitting candidacies and endorsements, with a very compressed schedule culminating on October 17. The leadership is pushing for Gabriel Rufián to repeat as lead candidate, Junqueras is out of the race for the general elections, and the main unknown is whether an alternative candidacy will appear that forces a competitive vote among the membership or if, on the contrary, the process will close with a single option proclaimed without the need for primaries in the strict sense.

According to the Statutes of Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya approved in 2025, the Presidency of the party is the single-person body that holds the highest institutional representation of Esquerra Republicana and is responsible for politically directing the organization and ensuring the regular functioning of its bodies. It is not a merely symbolic figure: it concentrates functions of representation, strategic direction, internal coordination, and legal management of the organization.

In general terms, the main functions and competencies of the ERC Presidency can be grouped into several blocks:

1. Political and strategic direction of the party

• Direct Esquerra Republicana as a whole, setting the major political and strategic lines of the organization.
• Ensure the party's actions in all areas (institutional, organizational, social, territorial), making sure that positions and actions are consistent with the party's principles and agreements.
• Promote and coordinate the leadership's action, in close collaboration with the General Secretariat and other members of the Executive.

2. Institutional representation and external relations

• Institutionally represent Esquerra Republicana before other political forces, institutions, and social organizations, both in Catalonia and in other territories where the party operates.
• Maintain and channel political and social relations of ERC with other organizations, coalitions, or platforms, according to the decisions of the competent bodies.
• In the legal sphere, exercise, together with the General Secretariat and the Finance Secretariat, the legal representation of the organization, as provided in the statutes.

3. Competencies over internal bodies

• Call the party's congresses and national conferences, according to the procedures established statutorily.
• Call and preside over the National Executive and the National Permanent, set the agenda, moderate debates, and ensure the proper conduct of meetings.
• Preside and moderate the debates of the bodies it convenes, ensuring compliance with internal regulations, respect for internal plurality, and execution of adopted agreements.
• Supervise compliance and follow-up of agreements of the main leadership bodies to ensure they are put into practice.
• Account for their management before the National Council, which is the highest body between congresses. The Presidency must explain the actions carried out and submit them to the political control of this body.

4. Organizational management and legal powers

• Participate in the direction and administration of the party together with the General Secretariat and the Finance Secretariat, in everything affecting the organization, functioning, and resources of ERC.
• Grant general or special powers of attorney on behalf of the party, usually together with other persons authorized statutorily (General Secretariat, Finance), for legal, financial, or administrative actions.
• Create, merge, or dissolve territorial federations and local sections, according to criteria set by the statutes and collegiate bodies; this is a competence with great impact on the territorial structure.
• Motivatedly dissolve a territorial executive and appoint a management committee when causes provided by the statutes occur (serious conflicts, breaches, organizational blockage, etc.), thus ensuring the continuity of the party's functioning in the territory.
• Motivatedly deny admission of new members in cases provided by the statutes (for example, incompatibilities or violation of basic principles), always with guarantees and internal control.

5. Territorial dimension of the Presidency

At the territorial level, the statutes provide for presidencies in structures such as federations. In that scope, the corresponding Presidency:

• Calls and sets the agenda of the congress and executive of its territorial scope.
• Presides over debates and ensures compliance with agreements in that scope.
• Maintains political and social relations proper to that territorial level and coordinates the county or local presidencies.

6. Mandate and time limits

The statutes establish that the Presidency has a four-year mandate, renewable consecutively up to an ordinary maximum of twelve years. This count can be suspended when the person holding the Presidency cannot fully exercise their functions due to causes of political repression (imprisonment, disqualification, exile, or other judicial processes of a political nature), reflecting the party's experience in the Procés cycle.

Overall, the Presidency of Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya is a figure with decisive weight in defining the political line, public representation, and territorial articulation of the party, but subject to the control and decisions of the collegiate bodies that govern the internal life of the organization.

State-level joint candidacies for the general elections (party coalitions) are generally governed by the Organic Law 5/1985, of June 19, on the General Electoral Regime (LOREG), and by the interpretative instructions of the Central Electoral Board (JEC). There is no distinct legal category of “state coalition”: the same coalition regime applies to any election process by direct universal suffrage, including Congress and Senate.

1. Basic applicable regulations

• LOREG, especially the provisions on:
  • Subjects who can present candidacies and coalition formation (art. 44 LOREG, according to the BOE itself: link).
  • Presentation and content of candidacies, names, acronyms, and symbols (art. 46 LOREG, according to the same text).
  • Requirements for endorsements for parties, federations, and coalitions without prior representation (art. 169.3 LOREG, amended by LO 2/2011).
• Instruction 1/2010 of the JEC, on the application of art. 44.2 LOREG regarding the formation of electoral coalitions (link).
• Instruction 7/2011 of the JEC, on the procedure for accrediting support signatures for candidacies to Congress and Senate (link).
• Royal Decree 605/1999 and development regulations, for official signature collection forms, cited by Instruction 7/2011.

2. Formation of the coalition

According to art. 44 LOREG (in its current wording), lists can be presented by registered parties and federations, constituted coalitions, and groupings of electors. For a coalition:

• Parties and federations that establish a coalition agreement to run jointly in an election must notify the competent Electoral Board within ten days following the election call (art. 44.2 LOREG).
• This notification must include:
  • The name of the coalition.
  • The internal rules governing it.
  • The persons holding its leadership or coordination bodies.

Instruction 1/2010 specifies that the competent Board to accept the coalition depends on the territorial scope. When the coalition extends to more than one province (as with state-level coalitions for general elections), the competence corresponds to the Central Electoral Board, which must receive the documentation directly.

3. Formal presentation of candidacies

Once the coalition is notified, it must present its candidacies by constituencies:

• Candidacies are presented before the competent Electoral Board between the 15th and 20th day after the call (art. 46 LOREG, according to the BOE).
• The presentation document must indicate:
  • Name, acronyms, and symbol of the coalition promoting the list.
  • Full names of candidates and, if applicable, substitutes, with their order.
  • Acceptance of the candidacy by each candidate and documents proving their eligibility.
• In parallel, LOREG requires the designation of general representatives of parties, federations, and coalitions and representatives of the candidacies, who will act before the Electoral Administration (articles on representatives cited in LOREG itself).
• Regarding financing, electoral administrators (general and for each candidacy) must be designated and the corresponding electoral accounts opened, according to the chapter on expenses and electoral accounting of LOREG and instructions from the Court of Auditors.

4. Use of acronyms, symbols, and names

Art. 46 LOREG establishes that:

• Candidacies must be presented with names, acronyms, or symbols that do not cause confusion with those belonging to or traditionally used by other legally constituted parties.
• Symbols that reproduce the flag or coat of arms of Spain cannot be used, nor names or symbols referring to the crown.
• Alongside the candidates' names, in the case of coalitions or federations, the name of the party of affiliation may be included, which enhances transparency towards the electorate.

5. Endorsements and support signatures

Following the reform of LOREG by LO 2/2011 and the JEC's interpretation in Instruction 7/2011:

• Parties, federations, or coalitions that did not obtain representation in any chamber in the previous Congress and Senate elections require the signature of at least 0.1% of the registered electors in the constituency where they intend to run (art. 169.3 LOREG).
• Instruction 7/2011 clarifies that a coalition does not need to gather that 0.1% if any of its member parties obtained representation in Congress or Senate in the previous election.
• Signatures must be collected on official forms provided in Royal Decree 605/1999 and after the call, including elector identification data, and electronic signatures are allowed under Law 59/2003.

6. Differences between state-level and smaller-scope coalitions

LOREG does not introduce different material requirements for a “state” coalition versus an autonomous or provincial one: the same rules apply for notification within ten days, presentation of candidacies, symbols, and endorsements. The practical difference lies in:

• The competent Electoral Board to accept the coalition (for more than one province, the Central Electoral Board, according to Instruction 1/2010).
• The fact that the state coalition will present candidacies in multiple provincial constituencies, always applying the same rules on deadlines and documentation in each.

7. Consequences of non-compliance

If legal requirements are not met, three types of consequences may occur, in summary:

• Rejection or non-proclamation of the coalition or certain candidacies (for example, due to late submission, lack of coalition agreement notification, absence of endorsements when required, or use of confusing acronyms).
• Requests for correction by the competent Electoral Board within deadlines set by LOREG (especially for formal defects or incomplete documentation).
• Appeals: decisions of the Boards may be subject to claims and appeals before the Electoral Administration itself and, ultimately, to contentious-electoral appeals before the competent jurisdiction, as provided by LOREG and the Boards' functions (which include “resolving complaints, claims, and appeals” and correcting electoral process infractions).