The ERC bases have spoken. 53.5% of the more than 8,200 party members called to the polls this Friday have endorsed the investiture agreement that, barring a last-minute surprise, will make Salvador Illa the 133rd president of the Generalitat.
Participation was high, 77%, as predicted by the fact that less than an hour after the start of the consultation, 25% of the armed forces had already voted. The final result was 3,397 votes for yes, 2,847 (44.8%) for no and 105 (1.7%) abstentions.
The pact approved today is “in line with what ERC is,” party leader Marta Rovira said during a press conference after the results were announced. According to the Republican, the agreements are a response to a reading of the new political cycle that ended with the pro-independence majority in Parliament and in which the left has lost strength. “These two facts have pushed us to reflect, listen to each other and propose decisions without forgetting our objectives: independence and social justice.”
Rovira took advantage of his performance to praise the high participation of his bases and to congratulate his people for the “great exercise of participation and democracy that we have shown.” The agreement, he says, has full legitimacy, despite having gained anything. “The result is clear. We said yes to more resources, to the Catalan treasury, to the possibility of speaking on an equal footing with the state. “We said yes to our support,” he said.
Now Rovira has warned that ERC has given a “vigilant yes. It is not an absolute yes.” The Republican leader has acknowledged that the doubts among those opposed to the pact did not stem from its content, but from “who on the other side signs it.” Rovira is aware that a large part of his people “distrust” the PSC. For this reason, he has insisted that ERC will remain in opposition. “It is from where we have the most strength to be vigilant and ensure that the agreement is respected, which is what the fighting spirit demands of us.”
Oriol Junqueras also highlighted the high percentage of 'no' votes in a message published on the social network. He also proposes to strengthen the “frank and honest” dialogue with all activists.
A close vote
All day long, nerves have been on edge, both among those in favor of yes and those in favor of no. And the party has voted at a time of maximum division. Although the leadership has strongly defended the agreement with the PSC, some prominent voices, such as deputy Pilar Vallugera or former councillor Alfred Bosch, have actively campaigned for the no. And in the centre, Oriol Junqueras, still considered a political reference by a large part of the armed forces, did not explicitly support the text and claimed to understand the doubts it raised.
The successive electoral failures and the controversy over the posters against the Maragall brothers have only contributed to heating up the already tense atmosphere within the ERC, which has been experiencing internal strife for several months. All this has been crowned by a clear dispute between the two leaders who have led the party since the beginning of the process: Oriol Junqueras and Marta Rovira.
Today the victory, although only minimal, is for Rovira, who has stood up in recent weeks to advance this agreement and defended the pact against its opponents, who have not been few.
However, there is still one obstacle to be overcome. The Republican Youth (JERC) announced on Thursday that, regardless of what the bases would choose, they would convene a National Council, in which they would decide on the direction of the vote of Vice-Mar Bessas during the plenary session of the investiture.
They made this known in a statement in which they were clearly against investing in the Socialist candidate. “We are not afraid of the polls,” they pointed out, referring to the electoral rerun that Catalonia would face if no president is approved by August 26.
The National Council has finally been convened for Monday, August 5, and if the youth decide not to vote for Illa, the socialist candidate would lose the majority (which stands at 68 deputies, exactly the sum of all the votes of the PSC, ERC and Comuns). What the JERC decides could mean a sudden turn in the script for the events of the coming days. Rovira has pointed out that they will respect the internal processes of the youth, but she appears calm. “I am convinced that we will reach an agreement,” she concluded.
If this is ultimately the case, the ball will be in the hands of the President of Parliament, Josep Rull. Once Illa informs him of her intention to run, she will have to start the consultation round with all parliamentary groups and then convene the plenary session. If nothing changes and the procedures do not take longer than necessary, the appointment is expected to take place between Tuesday and Wednesday of next week.
Since Illa would have 68 votes, which corresponds to an absolute majority in parliament, a second round would not be necessary and Catalonia could have a new president by the middle of next week.
Junts brings together its executive power
Reactions to the investiture agreement were heard throughout the afternoon. One of the first was from Junts, who announced in a statement that she would meet with the executive on Saturday to “assess the new political situation” and what this pact “will mean for the country and the independence process.”
Something to keep in mind is that Puigdemont assured that he would appear at the investiture debate, whoever the candidate was, even though it would almost certainly mean his arrest. Asked if the arrest of the former president could change the direction of the ERC vote, Rovira pointed out that the pact signed with the PSC is also such that “he returns with maximum tranquility and freedom. But if that does not happen, this executive must meet and make decisions that it has not yet made.”