Who is most concerned about Camps' challenge in the Valencian Community: Feijóo or Mazón?

ValenciaIf there are two people who grimaced on Wednesday when Francisco Camps confirmed his intention to contest the leadership of the Valencian PP were Carlos Mazón and Alberto Núñez Feijóo. The former, because the former president's candidacy questions the figure of the Alicante politician and further complicates his already complex continuity. The second, because he fears that the crisis in the Valencian federation will jeopardize his chances of reaching the Moncloa, as happened two years ago.

The Valencian People's Party (PP) has long been the main thorn in Feijóo's side. It was in July 2023 when the head of the Council made a pact with Vox his executive ten days before the state elections. The move revealed what the Galician politician's alliance strategy would be if the Popular Party failed to achieve an absolute majority. Former bullfighter Vicente Barrera.

Feijóo's second major fallout with Mazón came on October 29th as a result of the Council leader's handling of the DANA (National Plan for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women). It's clear that the PP president expected the Alicante politician to resign after the catastrophe, given that it resulted in the deaths of 228 people. But he didn't leave his post, and Génova failed to get him to cave in to the pressure either. As the months passed, the PP leader resigned and accepted the pact offered by Mazón, which essentially consists of buying time to try to regain the public's trust. The key to his political future will be the polls. If the polls are favorable to the Council leader when the regional elections approach in May 2027, he could claim to be on the electoral list again. If not, there will be a stir.

The provincial fracture

And it is in this minefield, where the mere swipe of a fly could demolish bridges built with a true exercise of political craftsmanship, that Camps has decided to land with a bang to demand a return to the political frontline. He claims he has been cornered and belittled. That they have forgotten about him. his acquittalBut obviously this amnesia includes that the Valencian PP was convicted of illegal financing during the years in which he headed it, and which also ended up in prison former advisors of his executive such asRafael Blasco,Milagrosa MartínezandVictor Campos, in addition to provincial leaders such asCarlos Fabra and Alfonso Ruso.

If Feijóo's announcement is upsetting, it goes without saying what it is for Mazón, who has had to feel that under his leadership, the Valencian PP is deactivated, asleep, and weakened. That he forgets and is ashamed of the legacy he inherited. Among those who reproach him for not claiming his legacy are some of Camps's main supporters, such as the former presidents of the Valencia and Castellón provincial councils, Alfonso Rus and Carlos Fabra, who had to resign when they were investigated—and subsequently convicted—for corruption. He is also supported by the former mayor of Alicante, Sonia Castedo, who helps the former president compensate for the lack of allies in Alicante, a territory that politically belongs to the former head of the Council, Eduardo Zaplana—also convicted of corruption– and, therefore, to his political son, Carlos Mazón. The struggle for the leadership of the Valencian PP also hides a territorial fracture: the anger of the leaders of the provinces of Valencia and Castellón, who believe that Alicante is accumulating too much power. A discontent that Camps intends to capitalize on.

The dispute for the leadership of the Valencian PP will be long, given that there is no date for the regional congress. The main beneficiaries of the confrontation will be the opposition parties, who resignedly watched as the PSOE corruption cases had become a lifeline for Mazón, who had ceased to be at the center of political debate. The head of the Council knows that noise is detrimental to him. That's why this Thursday he opted for the most conciliatory tone possible. "Utmost respect [for Camps], whatever he does and whatever he says," he simply commented. An opinion shared by Feijóo and his right-hand man, Miguel Tellado, who is also a staunch defender of Mazón. The new PP secretary general was quite explicit when he assessed the former president's move. "It's a mistake" to open "untimely" debates, he emphasized. Camps, however, seems to be lacking in his ability to take a stand.