Internal rebellion in Vox

BarcelonaInternal rebellion within Vox, with Murcia and Madrid as key focal points. Following the defiance of the party leader in the Madrid city council, Javier Ortega Smith, who He ended up being sent off from the gameNow it's the turn of the Murcian leader, José Ángel Antelo. This Friday, he decided to join forces with Ortega to confront Santiago Abascal's leadership, whom he has challenged, refusing to "submit" to his proposals and rejecting his resignation from the regional leadership. In his opinion, he has not committed "any serious error": "I wasn't born to submit; loyalty is telling the truth," he declared in an interview with Onda Cero.

According to Vox sources consulted by ARA, the leadership, balancing internally amidst the chaos between the two factions in the region with deep disagreements, proposed a restructuring of the leadership to Antelo, beginning with his replacement, in exchange for his continued leadership in the regional parliament and as a candidate in the next elections. But things didn't go as planned: Antelo clung to his position as president of Vox Murcia, and on Thursday there was a mass resignation from the leadership to force him to step down. Those who resigned cited a "profound disagreement" with his management and wanted to leave the party in the hands of the national leadership, but on Friday Antelo further hampered Abascal's plan. The now-dissident leader acknowledged that Abascal had raised the possibility of him running again in the elections, but added that he didn't understand why this would imply his resignation as president of the party in Murcia.

When asked about the matter, Abascal responded in statements to the media from Tordesillas that "there is no issue, internal or otherwise," that would "distract" him from his obligation to "respond to the concerns of the citizens," such as ousting Pedro Sánchez. He also criticized the political maneuvers: "Neither orchestrated campaigns with identical talking points, nor betrayals, nor ambitions, nor campaigns orchestrated simultaneously from Génova and Ferraz [the headquarters of the PP and PSOE]," he concluded. Antelo is currently retaining his seat as a regional deputy, although "all options are on the table," according to the Murcian politician. Sources within the far right emphasize that the matter will not escalate further for now, as they are focused on the election campaign in Castile and León. However, this does not prevent them from noting that the political landscape in Murcia is "very unstable," as is the situation in the Balearic Islands—where there are non-affiliated deputies and even a newly created political platform.

Madrid-Murcia Connection

In this context, it is no coincidence that Antelo reposted a message of support from Ortega Smith on social media: "Time puts everyone in their place." The Madrid councilman has been declaring war on Abascal for over a week, after disobeying the state order to be relieved of his duties as spokesperson in the Madrid City Council. He has threatened the state leader with legal action. and continues to position himself as a representative of Vox despite the expulsion – of him and of two councilors who have supported him, Ignacio Ansaldo and Carla Toscano.

Critics are seizing the opportunity to escalate the internal conflict, as is the case with former Castilian-Leonese leader Juan García-Gallardo, who resigned due to political disagreements with the national leadership: "Abascal throws the stone and hides his hand, forcing the 'voluntary' resignation of all the members of the Murcia Provincial Executive Committee to make it appear spontaneous. A leader who bases his leadership on fear, instead of authority, is not a leader, but something else," he asserted on X. He even pointed out that it is "curious that they want to get rid of the only regional leader with a current chance of winning the elections in the short term" and that the maneuver has been "driven from the shadows by a boomer ex-PP who depends on the CEO to pay his mortgage and alimony to his ex-wife,” referring to Murcia councilman Luis Gestoso, who is said to be close to Abascal. He further embellished the statement by talking about “dirty war” and “the whims and fancies of the apparent leader.”

Former Vox spokesperson Iván Espinosa de los Monteros expressed similar sentiments, lamenting in an interview with COPE “the internal impoverishment of Vox” and the fact that “anyone with any leadership potential is silenced.” He was even more forceful, recalling that “in 2023, Vox went from 52 seats to 33 and there was no self-criticism,” and that “then came the party’s illiberal and statist turn, with decisions that no one understands, such as leaving Giorgia Meloni’s Conservatives and Reformists group” to join Viktor Orbán and Marine Lehman’s Patriots group. Le Pen. On Thursday she had already said that "they haven't even put out the fire they started with Ortega Smith and they're already taking out another of the best candidates."

The internal revolution in Vox is not new, but it is curiously worsening at a time when the far right is enjoying a sweet spot, both in the polls and at the ballot box. In two weeks there are elections in Castile and León, where everything points to them being decisive again in propping up a PP government, and they are keeping pace with negotiations with the Popular Party in both Extremadura and Aragon.