The four Junts candidates heading towards the Barcelona primaries
Giro is thinking about it, Cuevillas is finalizing the step and Freixa is leaning towards presenting himself, after Martí's announcement
BarcelonaThe path to Junts primaries in Barcelona has already begun and four candidates are starting to make their move. As ARA has been able to learn, former Economy Minister Jaume Giró is considering it, although, of the four, he is the one who sees the option of taking the step to run as furthest away. Lawyer Jaume Alonso-Cuevillas is finalizing his candidacy while waiting to speak with former president Carles Puigdemont, and the secretary of the Parliament's desk Glòria Freixa is leaning towards running. All three would join the municipal leader, Jordi Martí, who a few days ago officially announced he would run in the primaries, causing an internal earthquake in the party.
Junts's Secretary General, Jordi Turull, met this Wednesday with the people who had expressed interest in running –Alonso-Cuevillas, Freixa, and Giró, in addition to former Health Minister Josep Maria Argimon, who for now remains out of the race, according to consulted sources–. Turull conveyed to them that there will be primaries if there is more than one candidate, asked them what they would do, and told them to do as they wished. Although the leadership's initial intention was to avoid primaries and choose a consensus candidate, the process will begin on June 1.
Triple scenario
Giró says he does not want to make statements, but sources in his environment emphasize that he will think about it until next Tuesday. He has received multiple messages from people asking him to, even though he distanced himself from the party due to disagreements with the leadership. The pragmatic nature of the former politician, who resigned as a deputy and from the Junts executive, is valued within Junts. He was already sounded out in the past to be the candidate for mayor, and several members of Junts see him as a hope to overturn the political landscape in the municipal elections.
For his part, Alonso-Cuevillas assures ARA that the meeting with Turull "went very well": "I have the desire, strength, and enthusiasm, I believe I can win the primaries and regain the mayoralty of Barcelona," he maintains. However, he comments that he needs to have an "extensive conversation" with Puigdemont before making the step official. The last one they had was in October. "I hope to be able to make it official in the coming days," he stresses, always after listening to the former president. Thus, he comments that in 2018 it was Puigdemont who offered him to be the candidate for the following year and that he had to decline the offer for "professional reasons." A "thorn in his side," he assures. The lawyer who led Puigdemont's defense at key moments considers that primaries are normal all over the world and sees himself well-positioned to excite the membership.
In Freixa's case, she had been thinking about running for months and is now "evaluating" it to bring "new faces" and "fresh air" to the party. After talking with Turull, and having consulted with her closest circle, she is leaning towards running, according to her environment tells ARA: every day it is "more likely" and she is "encouraged." Although it is not sealed, the officialization of the candidacy is closer, with a view to June 21, when the eventual results of the vote among the thousand Barcelona militants will be proclaimed. Freixa founded and chaired Òmnium Sarrià - Sant Gervasi during the stage prior to the Process and during the effervescence after 2012. This led to her being considered as a convergent but also as a person linked to civil entities to be on the 2017 list. Once Junts was founded, the former Barcelona leader Elsa Artadi commissioned her to set up the party in Sarrià - Sant Gervasi, and Freixa was its president until she went to the national leadership with Turull and was forced to leave her position in the district due to incompatibility.
On the other hand, the national spokesperson and vice-president, Josep Rius, preferred to give up the battle, as he said, to avoid primaries that could cause a sense of confrontation within Junts. The internal vote, however, will be held in his absence. The process, which many internal voices consider to be "late", has accelerated since Jordi Martí stepped forward. He was the right-hand man of former mayor Xavier Trias at City Hall and has always had an important rapport with him. His ability to win over the grassroots is his main asset. Martí assures ARA that he is going "step by step, without confronting anyone" and that he will work to create "a candidacy for the whole party" with a "solid" project that is the heir to Trias's.
The role of the leadership
It is planned that the national leadership "maintain neutrality", according to Junts sources consulted, like all "the party's bodies", and that "the membership decides". The leadership has ended up making a strategic shift, given that at first it did not want primaries and opted for a consensus candidate – who was to be Josep Rius or a recognized person, although on the way they have not obtained the "yes from either ex-president Artur Mas, or businessman Tatxo Benet, or alternatives like former minister Quim Forn.
Turull kicked off the internal process this Wednesday with the head of municipal policy, Joan Ramon Casals; the president of the federation, Joan Rodríguez, and the district presidents: on June 1, the Junts body that is to ensure the proper functioning of the process – the Territorial Municipal Commission – will be constituted. Then, 20% of endorsements will have to be submitted, and on June 21 there will be a proclamation of results after the vote – members can endorse more than one candidate.
