The official candidacy, headed by Raquel Martínez, has finally prevailed in Andalusia with 52.4% support, but with very low participation. As the party made public this Saturday, Martínez, until now secretary of Organization in the community with the , has achieved the endorsement of 1,688 militants, compared to the 1,326 of her rival, the councilor of Seville Susana Hornillo. In total, there were 20,000 registered voters called to participate in the process, as sources from the regional leadership of Podemos had reported, and only 3,217 voted. Leaders from the eight provinces were present on Martínez’s list, a large part of Podemos’s thirty Andalusian councilors and two of its three regional parliamentarians.
Hornillo, spokesperson for the party in the council, was very critical of the alliance policy practiced by Velarde’s leadership and the campaign had become angry in recent days, especially on social networks. In her message of gratitude after learning of the results, the new person in charge of training called for “unity.” “I extend my hand to Susana Hornillo so that she can join the new Citizen Council as a guest, there is no one left over here,” she has published in X.
The result becomes more relevant because, if there is no advance, Andalusia will be the second community to go to elections in Spain in approximately a year and a half and what happens in this territory will set a precedent for the rest of the country. The parties have been preparing for that appointment for months now, trying to revalidate a coalition without the shocks that led to Podemos in 2022 and without them in the official registration of the brand.
Thank the militancy and registered members for the trust they have given me. I assume responsibility as Andalusian Coordinator, my first message is UNITY. I extend my hand to her to join the new Citizen Council as a guest, there is no one left over here.
— Raquel Martínez Aguilera (@RaquelAlmeraya)
In Castilla La-Mancha, the winner was the current leader, José Luis García Gascón, with 55.5% of support (429 votes), and in Euskadi, Richar Vaquero, also the continuing candidate under the leadership of former deputy Pilar Garrido – who decided not to repeat after the poor results of the regional elections last April – was elected by 46.5% (402 votes).
Without rivals in the primary votes, the spokesperson for Unidas por Extremadura in the regional parliament, Irene de Miguel, revalidates the position of coordinator in the region (94.9% and 378 votes) and, candidate for the presidency of the Xunta and former councilor in the City Council of A Coruña, takes the reins of the formation in Galicia by obtaining 80.4% of support and 702 votes. Although the party barely has a presence in the community after being left out of the main municipal corporations and the regional parliament, compared to the primaries of the other territories, participation has been the second highest. In Extremadura, without competition or doubts about De Miguel’s performance, the lowest has been recorded.
Podemos has yet to renew the addresses in La Rioja and Aragón, a process that will be carried out in the coming months, before facing its V Citizen Assembly. With no general elections in sight, the formation is likely to opt for continuing the tandem already de facto exercised by Ione Belarra and Irene Montero at the head of the organic and electoral leadership.
