Joan Laporta wins a resounding victory in the Barça elections

Barcelona"The members vote to decide who will represent them, and that's unique in the world. It's a wonderful thing about our club. Thank you, Barça," said Joan Laporta after being declared the winner of the club's presidential elections. Barça members renewed their confidence in Laporta. The leader of Defensem el Barça (Defend Barça) obtained 68.18% of the votes, defeating Víctor Font, who fell short with 29.78% of the vote. In absolute terms, Laporta garnered 32,934 votes, while Font received 14,385. Blank votes represented 2.04% of the total. After a whirlwind campaign of just one month, Barça fans opted for Laporta's continuity model, who in recent weeks has focused his entire discourse on explaining how he has led the club's economic recovery over the last five years. Font's proposals, therefore, were not enough to convince the members, and the plebiscite he so fervently called for ended up turning its back on the "change" spearheaded by the Nosotros (Us) movement. Laporta will begin his third term at the helm of the institution.

The winner, once victorious, repeated one of his campaign mantras: "Against everything and everyone." The leader of Defensem el Barça (Defend Barça) didn't forget to mention the members of the sporting management team: Deco, Bojan, and Hansi Flick. "From now on, nobody is going to stop us," declared Laporta, who reaffirmed: "The members endorse the work done and support us to continue."

Font, who was quick to congratulate Laporta on his "undeniable victory," expressed disappointment at the resounding defeat. The leader of Nosotros acknowledged that he hadn't expected such a decisive result: "When you want to win, a difference like this is a surprise, but the members are the ones who make the decisions with their votes." Font affirmed that he will continue working from outside the club. "I will continue striving to make Barça what I dream it to be," the candidate said. Despite stating that it is necessary to "reflect" on the reasons for the poor results, he identified "sporting performance" and the "return to Camp Nou" as the two key factors for a continuation of the current administration.

Laporta, who throughout the day received support from figures such as former president Jordi Pujol and minister Ernest Urtasun, knew he had won hours before the polls closed. In fact, in the late afternoon, the tent next to Camp Nou became a gathering place for Laporta supporters, creating a festive atmosphere. Laporta even celebrated the day by jumping and hugging Pedri, Raphinha, Marc Bernal, Marc Casadó, Pau Cubarsí, Fermín, and Gerard Martín. Hansi Flick, Ronald Araujo, and Gavi also went to the polls under the watchful eye of the winning candidate. Font, on the other hand, spent most of the afternoon away from the cameras, talking with club members who were gathered in the tent.

The lowest turnout since 1997

After a very positive morning turnout, participation declined in the afternoon. Even the celebration of the match against Sevilla (5-2) failed to spur members to the polls. Of the 114,504 Barça fans eligible to vote, only 48,480 cast their ballots, representing a 42.34% turnout. In percentage terms, this is the worst figure since 1997; in absolute numbers, one has to go back to 2015 (47,270) to find a lower turnout. Specifically, 43,282 members voted at the tent located near Camp Nou. The other polling stations were Girona (2,223), Tarragona (1,672), Lleida (741), and Andorra (562). For comparison, the highest turnout in the last 30 years was 53.79%, in the 2003 elections, when Laporta also won. Throughout the campaign, Font emphasized the importance of high voter turnout to achieve a change in the management model. He was also very critical of the failure to implement postal voting, which could have facilitated greater participation.

After five years in office, Laporta achieved his best result at the polls: in 2003 he obtained 27,138 votes, while in 2021 he won with 30,184 votes. This is a far cry from the 15,615 votes he garnered in the disappointing 2015 election – the year Josep Maria Bartomeu won – the only time he has lost an election. Meanwhile, Víctor Font's support has decreased compared to five years ago, when 16,679 members placed their trust in him. So, the candidate achieved a very similar percentage of support to this year, garnering 29.99% of the vote. Of course, in the 2021 elections, there was a third candidate, Toni Freixa, who received 4,769 votes (8.58%).

The elections have been marked by a truly bizarre campaign, which has had to coexist with the team's current sporting events. The elections were announced in mid-January for the first available date on the calendar according to the club's statutes: March 15th. This short timeframe contrasts sharply with, for example, the previous elections, which lasted four months. Thus, the candidates' events and proposals have been interspersed with key matches for the first team, such as the second leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final against Atlético de Madrid and the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 against Newcastle. It was also unusual that the elections coincided with a match at Camp Nou.