Barcelona en Comú faces the municipal elections of 2027 with the challenge of presenting, for the first time, a candidate other than Ada Colau. Gerardo Pisarello, a deputy in Congress and former first deputy mayor, has taken on this role, after winning the primaries against comedian Bob Pop. But, even before choosing a mayoral candidate, the party's new executive began to outline a strategy to improve the results predicted by polls and present themselves to Barcelonians as an alternative to the PSC. According to sources from the leadership, conveyed to el ARA, this strategy involves regaining presence in the Besòs Axis neighborhoods, where they believe they have room to grow and prevent a vote drain towards the far-right.

Gerardo Pisarello begins his roadmap as mayor of Barcelona En Comú for 2027. After winning the primaries against Bob Pop, The now-Member of Parliament has announced that he will open a round of talks with left-wing forces in the city, including the PSC (Socialist Party of Catalonia), to try to build a "broad front" for the 2027 elections. At a press conference this Monday, he admitted that it is unlikely this understanding will materialize into a single electoral candidacy, but nevertheless, he expressed his support for exploring all options. He also intends to open conversations with social movements in the city. Once he has listened to them, he will make a proposal for a possible agreement for the municipal elections to "win a Barcelona for the social majority," at a time when the electoral cycle points to a rise for the right.

Barcelona en Comú has chosen its successor to Ada Colau for the 2027 elections. Member of Parliament Gerardo Pisarello defeated comedian and writer Bob Pop in the party's first primary and will be the candidate for the next municipal elections. Pisarello received 68.6% of the vote, while Bob Pop, who shook up BComú by unexpectedly stepping forward, convinced 27% of registered members who voted. A total of 9,000 people were eligible to participate in the process, and 1,525 cast ballots. There were 4.4% blank votes. The former deputy mayor in Colau's administration has teamed up with councilor Carol Recio, who will be number two on his list.

Gerardo Pisarello (Tucumán, 1970) He is running in the Barcelona En Comú primaries to replace Ada Colau as mayoral candidate in 2027. He is currently a member of Congress and hopes to defeat his rival. Bob PopHe was the former mayor's right-hand man at City Hall between 2015 and 2019.

Bob Pop, the nickname of Roberto Enríquez, wants to be mayor of Barcelona. He's not content with simply being on a list behind a leading figure in the Comuns party, and he made this clear to Ada Colau and Gerardo Pisarello when they sat him down to discuss avoiding primaries that would divide the party. This is the first foray into politics for a media personality who began his career online, first as a blogger and then as a columnist for various publications, commenting on television programs and pop culture. Hence the pseudonym he kept when he made the leap to television with Andreu Buenafuente. It was on a set alongside Buenafuente that, in 2019, he publicly revealed his multiple sclerosis diagnosis. The disease has caused him a loss of mobility, requiring him to use a wheelchair. Bob Pop, who was born in Madrid in 1971, came to Barcelona more than 20 years ago for love—his husband, Mauro, already lived there. He now lives in an apartment in Ciutat Vella, which he searched for eight months due to the scarcity of available properties, but also because of the difficulty in finding housing adapted for people with reduced mobility. He is a regular at the Santa Caterina market and regrets not being able to practice Catalan in the Born district, which is overrun with tourists. He takes classes to improve his fluency in the language, and he has demonstrated his progress on a TV3 program. Bob in translation.

In his office at the Congress, Gerard Pisarello keeps three objects: a photograph of Frederica Montseny, an anarchist minister of the Second Republic; a portrait of Pi i Margall, Catalan president of the First Republic; and a Barcelona flag. These three symbols represent the values ​​with which the now-Congressman and former right-hand man of Ada Colau in the City Council identifies: grassroots left-wing movements, republicanism, and municipalism. The former deputy mayor of Barcelona is now taking the step to become a candidate for Barcelona en Comú in 2027 after several voices from space asked him to, when no one could yet foresee that they would end up testing each other's strength in a primary election with the writer and comedian Bob Pop. At the official launch of the candidacyOrganized hastily when the party realized it would have to fight for the mayoral nomination, Pisarello appeared flanked by Colau and Ernest Urtasun. A message that made it clear he is the official candidate of the party leadership.

The spotlights come on and Bob Pop takes the stage at the Barceloneta Civic Center, in front of about a hundred people who have come to hear why he wants to be mayor of Barcelona. The writer and comedian introduces himself: he wants to win the mayoral office of the Catalan capital, and that's "neither a joke nor a prank." Behind him, on a screen, his campaign poster from the Barcelona En Comú primaries is projected: "Bob Pop for mayor of Barcelona. Why not?" But, immediately afterward, the screen displays a photo from the official launch of his rival Gerardo Pisarello's candidacy. surrounded by the heavyweights of Comuns, from Ada Colau to the Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun“There are no ministers today, they won’t be coming. There’s no fairy godmother either. This coronation is rubbish compared to the official candidate’s, but at least you all are here,” Bob Pop says in the auditorium. And he adds, looking at the photo of Pisarello with the top figures of Comuns and other members of the party: “People’s faces aren’t exactly beaming with enthusiasm either.”

Barcelona En Comú is holding its first leadership primaries in its eleven-year history. Never before have two lists competed to lead the party, which faces the post-Ada Colau era with its sights set on the 2027 municipal elections and the big question mark of who its mayoral candidate will be. Until December 15, two candidates are vying to lead a party that aims to To forge alliances with the left in the city with the dream of regaining the mayoralty (a dream that, for now, faces opposition from the polls). Neither Colau nor Janet Sanz, the most visible figures in recent years, are running, nor is Gemma Tarafa, the number two in the BComú city council, who is now focused on her role as coordinator of Comuns.

A café next to the CCCB (Centro Cultural Barcelona) is the meeting point chosen by Bob Pop to explain why he wants to be the Barcelona en Comú candidate for mayor. More than 25 people show up, whom the writer and actor, originally from Madrid but now living in Barcelona, greets with a smile, an open notebook, and a pen in hand. Some order coffee, while others, after 6 p.m., head straight for beer. Everything is ready for Bob Pop to answer the question hanging in the air: what is his proposal for governing the capital of Catalonia?

Gemma Tarafa (Barcelona, ​​1971) has been the coordinator of Comuns since November, along with Candela López. She arrives after serving alongside Ada Colau as a councilor at Barcelona City Council since 2019.