Podemos is erased from the unitary photo of the Andalusian left

Barcelona"We have taken a step forward obeying the popular mandate. I appreciate the effort of the seven organizations that have made it possible for us to present the best candidacy: Por Andalucía". Antonio Maíllo, the candidate of the left-wing coalition led by Izquierda Unida and Sumar, recalled that Podemos is one of these seven formations that next May 17 will try to surprise in the Andalusian Parliament elections. But at Sunday's event in Seville, there was no trace of Podemos. The purple party, which has reluctantly accepted the Andalusian coalition after two resounding electoral defeats (in Castilla y León and Aragón), does not want to get involved in anything that is not strictly essential. And, despite the evident electoral climate in Andalusia, this Sunday the state pact was presented, which also brings together Comunes and Más Madrid.

Without Podemos, Maíllo was accompanied by the rest of the parties that support him. Three ministers (Ernest Urtasun, Mónica García, and Pablo Bustinduy) acted as his opening act with a common mantra: to denounce the "cuts" of the current president of the Junta de Andalucía, José Manuel Moreno Bonilla, who, moreover, they denounce will pursue the same policies as Vox regardless of whether he needs the far-right to govern.

The Andalusian coalition is the first experience of unity since Yolanda Díaz resigned from continuing to lead the Sumar project and her party signed a continuity pact with Comunes, Más Madrid, and Izquierda Unida. Podemos joined reluctantly and sold the pact as an exercise in "responsibility" to maximize the electoral results of the left. In fact, Ione Belarra's leadership assumes that they will probably not get a single regional deputy. Four years ago, when the PP achieved an absolute majority, the left beyond the PSOE (with Podemos included) only achieved five seats, in addition to the two from Adelante Andalucía, the party backed by Teresa Rodríguez. Polls do not predict a great increase for Por Andalucía now, although this Sunday Maíllo has set himself the challenge of "doubling the results".

The negotiations to go beyond a pact for the Andalusian elections are, for the moment, stalled. In fact, Podemos is flirting with the idea of a broader unity like the one proposed by Gabriel Rufián, in which, they say, ERC would be the reference in Catalonia and Podemos would be the reference at the state level. The republican leadership has already rejected this path and, the Sumar partners, do not contemplate a scenario in which they would have to dilute themselves within Podemos.