Pisarello makes the move official: "I want to be the first mayor of Barcelona of migrant origin"

BarcelonaWith chants of "Pisarello, Pisarello": that's how the Barcelona en Comú supporters greeted the current member of Congress on the day he presented his candidacy for mayor of Barcelona in 2027. Gerardo Pisarello Prados (Tucumán, Argentina, 1970) officially announced his intention this Saturday to run for mayor of Barcelona, joining the Sumar coalition, which includes Ernest Urtasun and former mayor Ada Colau, who arrived late to the event. "[Jaume] Collboni has not lived up to the needs of the people. He has been complacent with the powerful and lacked courage," he declared at the start of the presentation at the Ca l'Isidret community center in the Sant Martí neighborhood, despite the fact that the PSC (Socialist Party of Catalonia) won the mayoralty thanks to the Comuns and the PP (People's Party), to the detriment of Xavier Collboni. Pisarello has sought to emulate New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, of Muslim origin, who has stood up to Donald Trump, to define his project for 2027. "I want to be the first mayor of Barcelona of migrant origin, proudly Catalan, proudly Catalan, like Roig, Maria Mercè Marçal, and the young Lamin Yamal," he declared, amidst applause from the audience. "It won't be handed to us, but it's possible if we organize ourselves, persevere in the struggle, and build community," he stated. His idea is to achieve this by forging "broad fronts" of the left—though he didn't clarify whether he meant other parties or civil society—to stop the right and the far right. "We don't just want broad defensive fronts against fascism, but also a program of real transformations for the people. Without a courageous program, there is disillusionment with democracy, which is what fuels the far right," he said.

However, before he can run in the elections, Pisarello will have to fight internally to be the candidate. He will compete in the primaries with Bob Pop, who in November The race has already begun to run in the Barcelona en Comú primaries. Sources close to him explain that he is continuing with his meetings to explain why he wants to run as Barcelona en Comú's mayoral candidate, and this week he held a second meeting (included again by people like former member of Parliament Enric Bárcena).

However, some voices supporting Bob Pop denounce that the party leadership (which, as demonstrated this Saturday, supports Pisarello) is putting "obstacles" in the way of the writer presenting his candidacy and claim that the top brass wants to impose their option. Mireia Esteve reportsIn this regard, Pisarello said it was "good news" that there was a "lively debate within the party": "If I become the candidate, I hope to have Bop Pop by my side."

Ada Colau herself, who arrived at the party headquarters just as the alert for torrential rain in the Barcelonès region sounded on mobile phones, assured everyone that Pisarello would have the support of the Comuns group. In fact, not only were the two most prominent figures of the Comuns (Colau and Urtasun) present, but also the leadership of the party structure: the two party coordinators, Gemma Tarafa and Candela López.

"We need to recover the spirit of 2015, the drive of a city that refuses to give up, that is growing, willing to do everything to ensure broad left-wing fronts and prevent the right and far right from governing," Colau declared about Pisarello. For Urtasun, the mayoral candidate exemplifies the Barcelona he admires: "He's a Barcelonian by choice, from the Barcelona that is proud of its diversity and welcoming nature."

The project

Gerardo Pisarello has declared himself the successor to the project launched by Ada Colau as mayor of Barcelona in 2015—in fact, he was already part of her government—and will not return to the forefront despite having flirted with the idea of running for office in 2027. Pisarello, despite the ongoing primary process, has pledged to "reclaim the city," arguing that "being a resident of Barcelona cannot have become a privilege." He has committed to serving those who, despite "working all day," struggle to make ends meet or are forced to leave their neighborhoods because they can no longer afford the rent, declaring himself an heir to the political culture of the La Canadiense strike. And with whom does he intend to do this? He has announced that he will reveal his teammates sometime in January. According to the rules of the process, Pisarello must present a female running mate, whom he declined to announce on Saturday.