Adriana Lastra's candidacy has opened a discussion in the Asturian PSOE about the participation of the grassroots in the elaboration of the lists. Her direct designation as number one to Congress has generated discomfort in sectors of the federation, while Adrián Barbón defended this Friday that she is "the best candidate" due to her experience and her commitment to Asturias.
The regional executive ratified this Thursday the proposal of the President of the Principality with the support of Ferraz. Lastra, government delegate since July 2024, will once again head the candidacy in the elections on November 29. The leadership is betting on a well-known figure to mobilize the progressive electorate, but having reserved the first position without consultation has provoked criticism among local leaders and militants.
The criticisms of the procedure
According to information published this Friday by 'La Nueva España', some people willing to run and several groups have stopped their movements considering that the main positions are predetermined. "It seems that everything is already decided beforehand", says one of the militants cited by the newspaper. The critical voices argue that Lastra could have participated in the vote and that the leadership would then retain its powers to order the candidacy.
The discomfort reaches small and medium-sized groups, sectors close to the SOMA mining union and Gijón, where it was contemplated to promote local names. José Luis Alperi, general secretary of SOMA, already warned in the executive of the discomfort that the procedure could generate. The FSA defends that the formula has been agreed with the federal leadership and has been used in previous calls.
Barbón has supported the choice this Friday from Buenos Aires, where he is participating in the World Congress of Asturianism. He highlighted that Lastra "has demonstrated her capacity for control, management, for being in very difficult situations" and her parliamentary experience. He also considers her "capable of bringing together voters who are not only socialists, but many progressive voters".
With the head decided, the second position concentrates internal expectations. Roberto García Morís has begun to seek support, while the name of the Deputy Minister of Health, Pablo García, backed by SOMA, has been raised. The mayor of Corvera and member of the federal executive, Iván Fernández, who has not announced that he will run, is also mentioned.
From ascent in Ferraz to electoral return
Lastra faces her sixth consecutive candidacy as number one for Asturias. Her ascent in the federal leadership was linked to the return of Pedro Sánchez, whom she supported after the 2016 crisis and in the 2017 primaries. She was deputy general secretary of the PSOE between 2017 and 2022, a responsibility that during part of that period she combined with the socialist spokespersonship in Congress.
Her resignation came in July 2022, when she was pregnant and had needed medical leave. She then explained that her personal situation required "tranquility and rest." The audios known in 2025 later revealed the hostility towards her from Santos Cerdán, José Luis Ábalos, and Koldo García. Lastra denounced a "harassment and demolition operation" by Cerdán and assured that she had ended up resigning sick and pregnant.
She again headed the list in 2023, when the PP obtained three of the seven Asturian deputies and the PSOE was left with two, compared to the three it had achieved in November 2019. Sumar and Vox each got one. That precedent explains Barbón's commitment to expanding support beyond the usual socialist voter and regaining ground against the popular party.
Her candidacy will require leaving the Government Delegation before the formal presentation of the lists, as established by electoral legislation. The FSA plans to approve the complete candidacies for Congress and the Senate on Wednesday, October 14, after the votes in the groupings and applying criteria of territorial, generational, and gender balance.
