If the municipal elections in Barcelona were to take place now, Ada Colau (18.5%) would win. However, this victory would not save her from a three-way tie in seats. Not only Colau but also Xavier Trias (18.1%) and Ernest Maragall would obtain 9 councillors each on the new council, according to an internal survey commissioned by the Catalan Republican Left (ERC), carried out by Netquest and made public by broadcaster RAC1.
Just behind this trio of leaders would come the Catalan Socialists (PSC). Candidate Jaume Collboni would also have some bargaining power with 8 councillors. Until now, polls have placed Maragall in fourth position, and this survey, although carried out by Maragall's party, places him in third place in a highly contested race. The survey also shows that, for the first time, the extreme right-wing party Vox would obtain representation on the council of the Catalan capital. Specifically, they would have 3 councillors, the same as the PP. On the other hand, Ciudadanos, Valents and the CUP would be left out out of the Barcelona City Council.
Changes in the electoral race
The Netquest survey shows the evolution of the intention to vote in the Barcelona municipal elections in recent months. The impact of the introduction of Together for Catalonia (Junts) candidate Trias into the electoral race can be seen. At the beginning of the year, Jaume Collboni was the preferred candidate while mayor Colau and her Barcelona en Comú ticket was relegated to fourth position. The Trias effect was instantly felt, as the mere announcement of his candidacy was a huge blow and he topped the polls.
However, the candidacy of Xavier Trias has had other effects. According to the survey, the presence of the Junts candidate has activated Colau's voters and fragmented the votes against her.
The survey, which analyzes the evolution of the candidates weekly, places the peak of Trias, up till now, in mid-February, with 23% of the votes and 11 councillors. Since then, the former mayor has been losing strength, while ERC and Barcelona en Comú have been advancing positions. All of this leads to this triple tie that Netquest predicts would happen if the elections were held now.
New to Xavier Trias' list
This Wednesday, new members of Xavier Trias's candidacy for the Barcelona city council were announced. In addition to the former Catalan government ministers Victòria Alsina, Damià Calvet and Ramon Tremosa, the signing of Josep Rius, vice-president and spokesperson of the party, stands out, in seventh position on the list. In addition, the candidacy also includes the former leader of the Unió party, also a former vice-president of the Catalan government, Joana Ortega, who will be at number six.