Andalucía swings right
Last month became a period of on-
going negotiations between Andalucía’s
politicians after the regional election on
December 2 brought a major upset. Vox,
a far-right party founded in 2013, took
almost 400,000 votes - around 11 per
cent of the total - giving it 12 of the 109
seats in the region’s parliament.
The socialist PSOE party, which, until
September, controlled Andalucía in a
coalition with centre-right Ciudadanos,
lost 14 seats but remains the largest
party with 33 deputies. Socialist leader
Susan Díaz called it a “sad night” for her
party.
Ciudadanos gained 12 seats, doubling its
presence with 21 members, while right-
wing Partido Popular lost seven seats
reducing their representation to 27.
Adelante Andalucía, a coalition of four
regional parties plus the Greens, took 17
seats in the parliament, but captured
fewer votes and three fewer seats than
their constituent members achieved in
the 2015 election. But it was the arrival
of the 12 Vox members, the party’s first-
ever elected representatives, which
reduced the power of the socialists in
Andalucía. Vox rejects the far-right
label, insisting it is a party of “extreme
necessity” and says it is “in step with
what millions of Spaniards think.” Its
aim is to “make Spain great again” but it
has been described by critics as a
nationalist throwback to the dictatorship
of the Franco era.
A right-wing coalition between Vox,
Ciudadanos and the Partido Popular
would have 59 seats, four more than is
required for a majority in the chamber.
However, there has been strong
opposition to allow Vox to be involved
in decision making; the day after the
result, demonstrations were convened in
Málaga, Granada and Sevilla with
banners bearing slogans including,
“Andalucía is no place for fascism,” and
“Your hatred does not fit in our streets.”
Locally, both the PSOE and the Partido
Popular lost seats in the province of
Málaga, while Ciudadanos doubled their
representation, leaving all three parties
on four each out of the 17 seats - the
socialists worst-ever result in the
region’s elections. Adelante Andalucía
took three and Vox two of the
remaining seats. In Granada,
Ciudadanos were the big winners
increasing their total seats from one to
three, while both the PSOE and the
Partido Popular lost a seat each.
Adelante Anducía took two seats and
Vox seized one of the province’s 13
seats.
Across the region, the socialists, who
have been in control for 36 years, won
most seats in every province except
Almería where the Partido Popular led
the night. But the PSOE’s loss of control
to the right-wing parties was a serious
blow to Spain’s prime minister, Pedro
Sánchez, in his first poll test since he
came to power after the ruling Partido
Popular was ousted in June over a
corruption scandal.
As Soltalk went to press, negotiations
were continuing to form a viable
coalition to govern Andalucía ahead of
the December 27 deadline, the final date
on which the Constitution demands that
a new regional parliament should be
constituted. If it proves impossible for a
new president to be agreed upon by
members, parliament will be dissolved
and a new election called.
Larios takes control of El Ingenio
Salsa Patrimonio, part of the Larios
group, has become the sole owner of
the El Ingenio commercial centre in
Vélez-Málaga. Last month, it acquired
13,782 square metres of the site from
Cecosa Hipermercados SL which trades
as Eroski. The area changing hands,
including the Eroski supermarket and
the petrol station, has been owned by
Eroski since the complex opened in
2000. It has agreed a deal to rent back
the supermarket site for 25 years, albeit
with its footprint reduced by a third to
8,816 square metres.
Salsa Patrimonio said in a statement
that the transaction, “is part of the
ongoing investment strategy of the
company, which aims to optimise its
leased assets by acquiring new spaces
and modernising existing ones to adapt
to new market demands.” The
investment and planned major
refurbishment has come with a
reported price tag of €25 million.
The El Ingenio centre attracts more
than nine million visitors per year of
which more than half are from outside
Velez-Malaga and Torre del Mar. It
directly employs more than 700 people
with indirect employment of over 500.
9
Huelva murder
A 50-year-old man, who completed a
20-year sentence for murder in
October, has confessed to the killing of
a 26-year-old teacher. The body of
Laura Luelmo (pictured), who recently
moved 500 kilometres to Huelva for
her first full-time job, was found
partially clothed last month. She
appeared to have been strangled, struck
on the head and sexually assaulted.
Jail sentence
Cristiano Ronaldo has repaid €5.7
million which he was charged with
evading in taxes while at Real Madrid.
He has also been sentenced to two years
imprisonment, but as it is a first offence
and does not exceed 24 months, it will
be suspended. The final deal is expected
to be ratified in a Madrid court on
January 14 with Ronaldo testifying by
video link from Italy.
Madrid warning
Madrid has warned Cataluña that the
National Police could be drafted in if
the region’s own police force, the
Mossos d’Esquadra, continues to
tolerate separatist offences. The warning
followed a protest last month which
closed the AP-7 motorway during
which, Madrid says, Mossos officers
stood by and watched. The Interior
Minister warned that state security
forces would be ordered in if the
regional force fails to fulfil its legal
duties.
Catalan complaints
Jailed Catalan independence leaders on
hunger strike have sent 40 letters to
European Union authorities to
complain about their treatment. They
face charges including rebellion after
the unauthorised independence
referendum held in the region 15
months ago. The four claim that Spain’s
Constitutional Court is “blocking” all
their appeals to prevent their cases from
reaching the European justice system.