Enma López shakes up the PSOE of Madrid with primaries that catch Maroto by surprise

The PSOE of Madrid has entered today into a new internal battle for the candidacy for the Mayoralty of Madrid. The deputy spokesperson of the Socialist Municipal Group, Enma López, has taken the step to compete in primaries against Reyes Maroto, current spokesperson in Cibeles and socialist candidate in 2023. The movement has not surprised so much by the substance as by the form. In the party, it had been known for months that López could try, but not that she would do it just before the Federal Committee of the PSOE approves the primary calendar this Saturday.

The decision has been met with a mixture of discomfort, surprise, and expectation. In Ferraz and in the regional leadership, López is reproached for having anticipated the internal timings, even more so being a member of the Federal Executive and deputy spokesperson of the party. In Maroto's circle, they also did not expect to learn the news practically through the media, a few days before the Debate on the State of the City, an event in which the current municipal spokesperson will have to face the mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, with her internal leadership already questioned.

López defended this Friday that her step responds to the "correct path" and the will to build a project that "enamors" Madrid. She did so in a brief statement, without accepting questions from journalists, upon her arrival at the City's Social Council. She also thanked the messages of support received and focused on the militancy, the groups, and the need to recover enthusiasm in a place where the PSOE has not governed for decades.

The internal blow comes at a particularly delicate moment for the socialists. The week is marked by the pressure on Pedro Sánchez, the Congress vote that urged the president to submit to a vote of confidence, the wear and tear due to corruption cases surrounding the PSOE, and this Saturday's Federal Committee, designed to close ranks and organize the electoral calendar. In this context, López's emergence opens another front in the Madrid federation, always difficult for Ferraz.

From the socialist militancy in Madrid, the reading is more bittersweet. There is discomfort with the way the announcement was made and with the blow it represents for Maroto, who has been working in the city for years, meeting with groups, neighborhood associations, and social fabric of the districts. At the same time, it is also perceived that López can be a competitive candidate in primaries and that her profile has the capacity to move a part of the party that sees Maroto's cycle as exhausted, even though the former minister has done constant work in Cibeles.

A technical profile with weight in Ferraz and municipal experience

Enma López does not arrive at this race from outside the City Council. She is a socialist councilor since 2019, deputy spokesperson for the municipal group and responsible for Economy, Innovation and Finance in Cibeles. With a degree in Business Economic Law from the University of Vigo and a civil servant of the Superior Corps of State Insurance Inspectors, she has built a technical, economic profile very close to political communication.

She also has organic experience. She has been a member of the PSOE since 2002, coordinated Reyes Maroto's municipal campaign in 2023 and in recent years has gained visibility in Ferraz. First as a federal secretary linked to the economic area and then as one of the deputy spokespersons for the federal leadership. This national role gives her projection, but also explains part of the internal anger: in the PSOE they believe that a leader of the Executive should have better measured the times before opening a battle of this caliber.

The unknown now is whether the struggle remains a duel between Maroto and López or if it ends up expanding. In the Madrid PSOE, they also look at Mar Espinar, socialist spokesperson in the Madrid Assembly, who has gained presence due to her direct opposition to Isabel Díaz Ayuso. Espinar could be inspired by this move by Enma López and come out to fight against Óscar López for the Community of Madrid. 

The final decision will depend on the calendar approved by the PSOE and how the groups move in the coming weeks. But the first effect is already clear. López has broken the idea of a calm candidacy for Maroto and has forced the PSOE of Madrid to face an uncomfortable question: whether it wants to reward the work of these years in Cibeles or look for a new face to try to dispute with Almeida a city that continues to be one of the great pending subjects of socialism.