The Catalan Republican Left (ERC) has laid a complaint with Spain's electoral authority over the announcement made by the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, this Monday, asserting that he has breached electoral rules by favouring the Socialist candidacy in the Catalonia election on May 12th. In this regard, the Republicans have demanded that the Central Electoral Commission (JEC) prohibit the interview that the Spanish PM has granted tonight to Televisión Española, or, if that is not possible, that the other political parties be granted a similar space on Spanish public television. JEC sources have told ElNacional.cat that, at the outset, they "do not envisage" considering ERC's complaint at their meeting this afternoon, given that they normally need to request arguments for and against from the parties involved.
ERC criticizes Sánchez as carrying out "self-promotion"
ERC has criticized that Sánchez is using the "resources and structures of the public administrations" in an attempt at "self-promotion" in the context of the election campaign, which constitutes a breach of the principles of "equity and transparency" of the electoral process. "Sánchez has put on a media exhibition with the aim of diverting the attention of the media from the election campaign, thus undermining the fairness and integrity of the democratic process", the Catalan pro-independence party has denounced.
ERC notes that Spain's electoral law (LOREG) establishes that during the electoral period - which includes 14 days of campaign - "the public authorities cannot carry out any institutional campaign that attacks the principles of objectivity and transparency of the electoral process and equality between electoral actors". In this regard, the Republicans point out that the Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) and its candidate for the Catalan elections, Salvador Illa, have responded on social media to Sánchez's decision in order to "campaign". They also emphasize that Sánchez, in his speech, and just before announcing his continuity at the head of the executive, has explicitly thanked his "beloved Socialist Party" for its support in recent days.
In addition, ERC has pointed out that in his address this morning, Sánchez made a "campaign of merits" - that is, one promoting the work of his government, when the LOREG prohibits any act of the public authorities that contains "allusions to their achievements". Likewise, ERC denounces that Sánchez is to grant an interview that is announced as "his first after announcing that he will continue at the head of the executive", and also that the public CIS polling agency has urgently conducted a survey on Sánchez's letter last Wednesday, which includes a voting estimate that favours the PSOE.
Aragonès: "The last act of a five-day comedy"
Earlier, Catalan president and ERC candidate for May 12th, Pere Aragonès was devastating in his criticism of the Spanish prime minister's decision to carry on in his role without giving further explanations: "We have seen in his announcement the last act of a comedy that has gone on for five days, in which people's feelings and empathy have been played with", Aragonès denounced in a press conference from the party's headquarters. Aragonès showed himself fully convinced that if it weren't for the fact of the Catalonia election, Sánchez would not have taken these five days of reflection after publishing the letter last Wednesday: "This is not the way of doing politics that I advocate, I advocate treating the public as adults and talking about projects, proposals, away from personalisms and masterful tricks," said the ERC candidate.
Cs join the complaint
The director of the Ciudadanos (Cs) campaign, Jordi Cañas, states that his party will also bring to the electoral commission's attention the CIS flash poll which he has described as "disgraceful" and tonight's TVE interview. "The intention to intervene crosses any political threshold," he added. In a press conference, Cañas explained that they have also sent a letter to the justice commissioner of the European Union, Didier Reynders, warning of what Sánchez's "threat" could mean for democratic regeneration. And he asserted that the Socialist PM wants to "attack" judicial independence and freedom of the press.