In the middle, the candidates for political spokeswoman and general secretary Patricia Guasp and Adrián Vázquez. In the background, the President of Cs, Inés Arrimadas, during the presentation of her candidacy a week ago, together with Congress Gustavo Valiente (Europa Press)
Within two weeks, three candidacies for the leadership of Ciudadanos face each other. The party led by the Cs coordinator in the Balearic Islands, Patricia Guasp, and MEP Adrián Vázquez, to which party leader Inés Arrimadas belongs, last; that chaired by Parliament Speaker Edmundo Bal and Madrid City Councilor Santiago Saura; and a third promoted by two little-known members, member Marcos Morales and the Mayor of El Álamo (Madrid) City Council Laura Alves. All have received the necessary confirmations to take part in the internal election process that will eventually take place on January 11th and 12th. But not all of them make it to the primaries with the same vigour, the campaigning of which begins next Monday: the candidatures of Guasp, Vázquez and Arrimadas doubled those of Bal and Saura in advertising messages.
The collection of support, the data of which was published on Thursday evening, is as follows: the candidacy of Renace tu Partido (Guasp-Vázquez), 1,367 supporters; the ballot of the citizens of New (Bal-Saura), 679; and those of La Base del Cambio (Morales-Alves), 142. The affiliates called to vote in the primaries (those who are up to date and have been party members for at least six months) are 7,642, according to leading sources. A fact that sheds light on what the formation has been suffering from for years. When Arrimadas defeated lawyer in the Castilla y León Cortes, Francisco Igea, in the last internal election process for party leadership in early 2020, 20,713 militants were able to take part. Therefore, in less than two years, there has been a loss of around 63% of the Cs subsidiaries.
The guarantee numbers also indicate, at least for the time being, the low level of participation in the process. A few primaries where it has not been possible to stop the internal war spearheaded by the confrontation between Arrimadas and Bal to lead a party that is seriously threatened with disappearance. The disputes have prevented a unified candidacy that would materialize the re-establishment process launched in July. In concrete terms, around 29% of the affiliates participated to give their support to one or the other candidature.
This first victory for Guasp and Vázquez, members of the team that led the formation, was predictable considering that a large part of the regional coordinators are on the side of their candidacy, which means greater power to mobilize the territorial groups . “We have far exceeded the required supports and want to return that trust in a positive campaign of suggestions and healthy competition. This game deserves it,” Guasp thanked on Twitter. “We know that the candidacy is strong and very cross-sectoral. It’s just the collection of guarantees, but it’s a thermometer that motivates us,” add candidacy sources added.
Edmundo Bal surrounded by members supporting his candidacy this Thursday in Madrid Ricardo Rubio (Europa Press)
We’ll have to wait and see if the data from the guarantees translates into the final results. Applicants now have their sights set on the coming Monday, when a campaign will begin that will last until the 10th and for which teams will finalize their strategies. This Thursday, Bal presented his candidacy in Madrid in front of around 150 people. “They boldly support this candidacy of David versus Goliath. They are people who are taking a step forward because they want a change, because they want us to revive this political project that is more necessary today than ever,” the spokesman told the media. On January 12th, it will be determined which team will take on the mission to bring a crumbling Ciudadanos back to life.
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