Catalonia holds regional elections to determine its future relationship with Spain

Polls have opened in Catalonia for a regional parliamentary election that will have significant implications for Spain’s national politics. The ballot will test the strength of the separatist movement in the northeastern region and the reconciliation efforts of Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.

More than 5.7 million eligible voters will choose lawmakers for the regional parliament in Barcelona. Separatists have controlled the regional government for over a decade, but support for secession has waned since the failed 2017 breakaway attempt led by former regional president Carles Puigdemont.

Puigdemont, currently a fugitive from Spanish law residing in southern France, is running in the election and hopes to return to Spain once elected lawmakers convene to choose a regional president. His return hinges on Spain’s parliament granting final approval for a contentious amnesty for him and other separatists.

Sanchez’s conciliatory approach includes pardoning jailed separatists and pushing for reduced tensions in Catalonia. The election outcome will be a test of support for Sanchez’s Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party and his efforts at reconciliation.

The main battle in the separatist camp is between Salvador Illa, the Socialist candidate, and separatist Pere Aragones from the Republican Left of Catalonia party. Opinion polls indicate a comfortable lead for Illa, with a new far-right pro-secession party also vying for parliamentary representation.

With nine parties competing, no single party is expected to win an absolute majority of 68 seats in the chamber, making deal-making crucial in the post-election scenario. A victory for the Socialists would mark the end of a decade of separatist rule in Catalonia and a validation of Sanchez’s conciliatory approach.
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