From Andalusian grandparents to Colau and the consultation

En Comú Podem find their message in Catalonia

Antoni Bassas
2 min

BarcelonaCatalonia did not disconnect much. The turnout was six points lower than the Everest of 27 September, but yesterday, without the defiance of a plebiscite or special observers sent from around the world, 70% of Catalan voters cast a ballot, compared to 65% in 2011.

A good deal of the pro-independence majority went to the polls without having attended campaign rallies. They did so without enthusiasm, grieved by three absurd and offensive months after all of their efforts, but the hyper-politicized and super-mobilized public that has been in the making for the last five years could not stay at home, as strange as this campaign might have been and as badly as the parties have managed things. The result is a worthy pro-independence representation and the realization that there have never been so many pro-independence representatives in Spain’s Congress as there will be from now on. What they will do there remains to be seen.

A powerful mix

It is certain that they will look to Podemos' busy benches. For the first time, there will be dozens of Spanish MPs in the Spanish parliament who support a referendum on independence for Catalonia, most wearing the purple color of Podemos. Podemos has made good on the predictions in Catalonia: they have taken a quarter of the votes, have won in the Barcelona and Tarragona regions, and in the city of Barcelona they won 8 of 10 districts (including the Eixample) and only left two —Sarrià-Sant Gervasi and Les Corts— in the hands of Democracy and Liberty.

Pablo Iglesias has found a message (arguing for the right to self-determination throughout Spain and forgetting about people's ancestry) and, most importantly, has found the right partners. Ada Colau is now a decisive factor in Barcelona, Catalan, and Spanish politics. The unreserved involvement of the Mayor of Barcelona helped Podemos/En Comú Podem into the replacement for the pro-Catalan PSC that dominated general elections for decades. A powerful mix won in Catalonia: the 15M movement (the “indignados” populist protests that led to the creation of Podemos/En Comú Podem) and the right to self-determination.

And it is also historic that Catalan voters, freed from the national-plebiscite axis, sent the most rancid unionist parties, Ciudadanos and the PP, to the end of the line. The poor showing by Rajoy was expected; nobody expected it for C's. Failure. And goodbye Josep Antoni Duran i Lleida, head of Unió-- he is also relegated to history.

There is one vote remaining

On Wednesday there will be another vote in Catalonia, by the CUP in Girona. What influence will yesterday's results have on the proposed investiture of Artur Mas? And what single action might eventually be coordinated between the pro-independence bloc and supporters of the right to self-determination? They ought to read Goethe: “Let us not ask ourselves whether we agree on everything, only whether we are walking down the same path".

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