Josep Rius or Jordi Martí: Together intensifies the debate over the candidate in Barcelona

BarcelonaThe Junts maelstrom in Barcelona continues. The debate to find a mayoral candidate to replace Xavier Trias... who said goodbye to the council It's been a year and a half, and the decision is still not finalized, although the party leadership makes no secret of its preference for one of the current councilors. According to ARA, the option of recruiting last-minute candidates has been ruled out after receiving some rejections, and the candidacy of the party's spokesperson and vice president, Josep Rius, is gaining considerable ground as the clear favorite. However, Jordi Martí, the leader of the municipal group, handpicked by Trias, hasn't thrown in the towel. Rius is the best positioned in the eyes of the leadership, according to multiple sources, but the main objective is to "reach a consensus" and "avoid primaries," which would only be called in the event of a major conflict. The name, therefore, "is between Rius and Martí," says a council source, because the option of bringing in someone from outside the party "hasn't taken hold." In this sense, under the leadership's auspices, there are ongoing "conversations" involving the two potential candidates. The objective of these contacts, which have not yet yielded anything concrete, is to avoid a public "confrontation." How? With their commitment "not to call primaries until there is an agreement or a definitive break" between both sides—implying that, had they understood, the votes would have been avoided, although this now seems a distant prospect. Rius is the frontrunner, and in fact, Puigdemont has a particular fondness for him, according to several sources, but he will achieve his goal "provided everything is done calmly." "Nobody wants to go to war," they say.

"Ríos is gaining strength because they've tried to find someone from outside, and they haven't been able to," maintains another party member. Another voice within the party suggests that Rius is the most suitable person to chart the course and build a leadership from scratch in the city. The leadership is aware that, whoever the candidate is, the results will likely be worse than those of Trias's victory three years ago.

Martí has ​​the advantage of his track record as a councilor since 2011 –Rius has been one since 2023–, in addition to being Trias's right-hand man. His desire to run remains, and on his personal website He projects the municipal work he carries out. For his part, Rius is an essential figure in the Junts leadership and has a very good relationship with Puigdemont. As spokesperson, in his press conferences on current political affairs he also often makes references to Barcelona's municipal affairs, in addition to using social media to criticize Collboni. He combines the position of member of parliament with that of city councilor.

Candidates who fall

The current impasse doesn't prevent us from seeing that some scenarios have been ruled out, and that the path is being cleared while awaiting a significant gesture from Puigdemont. Although some voices suggest that his return could be "key" to clarifying the Barcelona candidate, the uncertainty surrounding the specific date makes the current talks crucial. So far, Junts has encountered resistance from former president Artur Mas to being the Barcelona candidate, as well as from former regional minister and city councilor Joaquim Forn. In its own poll of voters in the capital, the party also included the names of former councilor Josep Maria Argimon and that of councilor and former regional minister Victoria Alsina. All of them have ruled themselves out, while the offer from former regional minister Jaume Giró is a dead end for the leadership. And this is despite the fact that sectors of the former Convergència are trying, so far without much success, to put forward a pragmatic candidate like Giró.

In parallel, Junts faces another hot potato in a large city like Tarragona, where there will be rival for the throne Councilman Jordi Sendra, a close associate of Secretary General Jordi Turull, has been a candidate whose suitability has been debated for weeks. Meanwhile, lawyer Roger Baiges has already announced his intention to run for the position, which remains open.