Aliança Catalana is now also making its presence felt in Barcelona City Council

BarcelonaAliança Catalana is now also making its presence felt in Barcelona City Hall. The second wave of the municipal barometer, published this Tuesday, detects exponential growth for the far-right party. It has soared to the point of becoming the fourth largest party in terms of direct voting intention: 3.9% of those surveyed said they would support Silvia Orriols' party when asked how they would vote in municipal elections in the Catalan capital. This puts them only behind the PSC, Esquerra, and Barcelona en Comú, and ahead of Junts. Although the municipal barometer presents the raw data and therefore does not project the number of councilors, the snapshot provided by the survey suggests that Aliança could have a strong chance of securing seats on the City Council. In just six months – the time that has passed since the first wave of the barometer was published in June – the far-right party has gone from 2% in direct voting intention to almost doubling that figure, even though it currently has neither a candidate nor has it officially confirmed its candidacy in the Catalan capital.

First Deputy Mayor Laia Bonet has not hidden her concern about Aliança's results, although she framed them within the context of the party's growing electoral prospects nationwide. Bonet noted that there are now two far-right councilors in the city council, representing Vox, but admitted that they are worried "that hate speech could gain ground in Barcelona." "We can do nothing but continue dedicating ourselves to finding solutions to problems such as housing prices, the cost of living, and coexistence in our neighborhoods," she said. The emergence of the Orriols party has left Junts per Barcelona as the main casualty. After winning the 2023 elections with Xavier Trias as their candidate and 13.5% of the vote, they now only garner 3.4% of the direct voting intention. According to the barometer, the leading party in the 2027 elections would be the PSC with 12.1% of the direct voting intention. However, the Socialists also have cause for concern, as they obtained 16.1% in the previous barometer. A drop of four points in just six months. Nevertheless, Bonet emphasized that the barometer "confirms a trend from recent waves" that "clearly" places the PSC as the top voting option in the city. Furthermore, he emphasized that the municipal government receives good marks both in terms of its performance – 61.9% approve, and 45.7% of that figure consider it good or very good – and in terms of the mayor's score, which is his best ever at 5.2.

Left, second largest party

For the first time this term, Esquerra Republicana (ERC) has emerged as the second largest party – based on direct voting intentions – with 7.8% of respondents choosing the Republican ballot, three-tenths of a point higher than in June. Barcelona en Comú follows, dropping one point compared to the barometer from six months ago, reaching 6.9% of the intended vote. The People's Party (PP) and Vox remain virtually unchanged from the previous survey, with 2.4% and 2.1%, respectively. The Popular Unity Candidacy (CUP), meanwhile, obtains 2.3%, four-tenths of a point lower than six months ago. It is noteworthy, however, that 43.2% of respondents are undecided or unwilling to reveal their vote. The survey, based on 803 telephone interviews conducted between November 17 and 25, 2025, also asks about the evaluation of political leaders. In this area, there is a three-way tie between the mayor, Jaume Collboni, and the leaders of Junts and ERC in the City Council, Jordi Martí Galbis and Elisenda Alamany, all with a 5.2. However, while the mayor has a name recognition rate of 83.8%, the ERC leader's is 41.1%, and the Junts leader is only known by 18.8% of those surveyed. Housing remains the main concern.

As in the June barometer, housing remains the city's main problem for those surveyed. 32.8% of citizens consider it the primary concern for Barcelona residents, almost three points higher than in June (29.9%). In second place is insecurity, which, after some periods of decline, has risen 2.1 points to 25.2%. Third is concern about cleanliness, chosen as the main problem by 6.8% of respondents – 1.7 points higher than in June. Tourism, which was third six months ago with 9.8%, has fallen to fifth place, with 4.1%.

Alongside the rise of Aliança Catalana, this barometer confirms another trend that had already been emerging in previous surveys. "Immigration-related problems" remain the fourth biggest concern for Barcelona residents, with 6% of those surveyed identifying it as the city's main problem. This concern had been growing in recent editions of the Barcelona City Council's barometer, reaching 5.7% in the latest wave. A year ago, 4.3% of Barcelona residents cited it as a major worry.

Endorsement of the tram

Among the positive findings of the survey for the city government are the approval of two measures specifically addressed in the poll: stricter penalties for antisocial behavior and the tram line extension along Diagonal Avenue. Regarding the first measure, the survey—conducted before the approval of the new city ordinance on public order—indicates that 86% of citizens strongly or somewhat agree with increasing penalties for antisocial behavior. As for the tram line, the debate that had previously divided the city appears to be over. 69.8% of respondents strongly or somewhat agree with the tram line extension along Diagonal Avenue, while only 19.3% strongly or somewhat disagree.