INDEPENDENT NEWS

Catalan pro-independence parties set to win narrow majority

Published: Fri 22 Dec 2017 10:37 AM
With over 50 pct of Catalan vote counted, pro-independence parties appear to have a narrow majority. The unionist ‘Citizens’ party are marginally ahead in vote share and could finish as the largest party, however, the three pro-independence parties JuntsxCat, ERC and CUP seem, for the moment at least, on course for a narrow majority
The three pro-independence parties JuntsxCat, ERC and CUP may be heading for a clear – if slim – majority in parliament, but they do not have 50% of the popular vote. This will certainly not be the absolute mandate they were hoping for.
The pro-independence parties have a narrow majority with or without the support of the local version of the anti-austerity Podemos party, Comú-Podem (at around 8%). Podem En Comú is not strictly a separatist party, but would be willing to work with the left-wing pro-independence bloc, under certain conditions.
However, the left-wing bloc of Socialist, and Unionist parties look set to fall short of the magic 68 seats required for an absolute majority. This means they will likely have to work with right wing pro-independence party JuntsxCat – party of exiled Catalan president Charles Puidgmont.
Due to the complicated alliances here, this is still tight and could lead to a hung parliament.
However, this does not appear to be the result Spain wanted to see from these elections. Guardian writer Stephen Burgen was prepared to stick his neck out on this prediction at only 20% of the vote counted:
“This is looking like a catastrophe for Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy. As things stand, a secessionist coalition will have an absolute majority, his centre-right rival Ciutadans will have won the most seats and his own Popular party will have its worst ever result in Catalonia.
However, we have had few results from Barcelona and other urban areas. That could change the picture radically – but not in Rajoy’s favour. This is not what Rajoy had in mind when he called these elections.”
The turnout was a record high for the regional election with over 83 per cent of eligible Catalans turning out to have their say at the ballot box.
Joseph Cederwall
Freelance Writer
Joseph is Co-editor of Scoop and Editor of The Dig. Joseph is an editor, writer, and social entrepreneur with an interest in open and participatory media and business models. In 2019, Joseph founded The Dig. Joseph has qualifications in law and anthropology and previously practiced as a lawyer in the Immigration and Human Rights field. He is now applying this background to the practice of ‘reverse anthropology' using a framing of indigenous worldviews to deconstruct the dominant worldviews and cultural myths of Western society. Joseph has a longstanding interest in the commons, participatory democracy, social justice, and human rights. He was a co-founder, and founding Director of ActionStation Aotearoa - now NZ's largest online movement-building organisation. Joseph is also a Director of Freerange Publishing Cooperative, and a long-time contributor to Enspiral - a non-hierarchical collective of freelancers and ventures dedicated to collaborative business practice and purpose-driven enterprise. He lives in beautiful Taranaki and enjoys watersports, permaculture, tai chi, music, and being in nature.
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