"We need the leadership to align itself more with us. Sometimes it seems like they're in a different political moment." This statement, from a Junts mayor, sums up the sentiment among local officials about the direction of the party led by Carles Puigdemont and Jordi Turull. The departure of former minister Jaume Giró—who was well-connected in the region—and the downward trend in poll numbers have been the final straws: several local sources express "discomfort," "concern," or "worry" because they believe the party's public discourse doesn't sufficiently reflect its current situation in the municipalities. Some are even considering going to see Puigdemont to explain his position. "It's a cry for help," summarizes one source.

One of the challenges facing local governments—and institutional politics in general—is reversing the historically negligible presence of women in political parties and administrations. Although the number of women on electoral lists and in council and mayoral positions has multiplied over the last decade, significant gaps still exist in the types of responsibilities men and women assume in city councils, and parity has not been achieved in the mayoral positions.

Mayors are key players in all political parties. But right now, if there's a territorial power with growing influence on their political party's discourse, especially on the issue of immigration, it's the territorial power of Junts. It's the lobby of mayors and councilors from medium-sized cities, who are in good harmony with each other and who have organized to set the course: they are halfway through their term, two years before the municipal elections, and it's already clear that beyond the usual electoral competition with ERC and the PSC, they are also facing an event. In this sense, they have conspired to ensure that the party talks about "everything," including issues they believe have been considered "taboo" until now and are, instead, on the far right's agenda. Failing to address them, they believe, gives it wings.

"There must be a change regarding the municipal register. It's illogical that you can register someone who says they live on the river." Thus, in a recent interview with Europa Press, the Secretary General of Junts, Jordi Turull, advocated a review of the way municipalities register their residents. This proposal responds to internal pressure, which has intensified recently, from Junts mayors to tighten registration requirements and implement a series of reforms to social assistance in the face of the rise in immigration and also "occupations," they maintain. According to sources familiar with this internal lobby, several mayors have endorsed a report prepared by one of Junts' advisors at the Barcelona Provincial Council, which diagnoses, according to them, the "problems" currently facing the local community and proposes a series of legal changes that they hope will be embraced by the entire Junts leadership.