The ANC kicks out the mayoral candidate of Aliança Catalana

BarcelonaJaume Valls is no longer the coordinator of the ANC in Vilassar de Mar. As learned by ARA, the Assembly informed him that he was being dismissed as the entity's top representative in the Maresme town after it was made public that he will be the mayoral candidate for Aliança Catalana. It did so on September 30th, just two days after ARA published that Valls called Sílvia Orriols' party "fascist" when he was secretary of the entity in April 2024. Sources from the Assembly explained that the procedure to dismiss him was already underway and that it was not adopted before the publication of the article because the body responsible for making his removal effective first had to meet. The dismissal was carried out via an email in which he was informed that it was incompatible to be a candidate for a party and at the same time hold a position in the entity, as established by the internal regulations.

The same sources report that Valls responded "elegantly" and said he understood the decision adopted by the leadership, even though after being named as a candidate he had said he would only step down if he reached the city council. This Friday, he released a statement saying that the ANC dismissed him "only for appearing in a photo with Sílvia Orriols," even though he had already been presented as an Aliança candidate last September 19th during the celebration of the party's II Municipalist Convention.

Although the Assembly has distanced itself from Aliança Catalana, with a fierce defense of human rights, the organization asserts that the same decision would have been made if Valls were leading another candidacy: "It makes no difference if it is Aliança Catalana, Junts or ERC, the regulations establish that they cannot hold organic positions in any party, neither at the local nor the national level". ANC members can, however, be party militants, as many already are, and Valls will continue to be one, the Assembly explains, for as long as he wishes.

Aliança Catalana has kept Valls as a candidate, despite the serious disparaging remarks he made towards Sílvia Orriols' party. The leader of the party herself reacted to the news by downplaying the statements Valls made at the time, when he vehemently opposed the Sabadell branch inviting the Islamophobic party to a debate before the Catalan elections. "Everyone who loves their children and grandchildren will end up in Aliança Catalana. The sooner you accept it, the better for you", she limited herself to saying, without wanting to evaluate Valls' reproaches towards the party she leads.

Valls, however, was one of the secretaries most belligerent towards the attitude of the Sabadell ANC in inviting Aliança Catalana candidates to Parliament. "Have you lost your minds? Did you not go to school when reading comprehension was taught? To fascism, not a drop!", he went as far as to say in a message on X (then Twitter). Words that have not taken a toll on him because Aliança Catalana has placed its trust in him. In conversation with ARA, Valls avoided entering into assessing the criticisms he made of Aliança Catalana two years ago and limited himself to saying that he had joined the party disappointed with the major pro-independence parties and by the values defended by Orriols' followers.