Podemos has opened a path to run alongside the Broad Front in the general elections on November 29. Ione Belarra's party agrees to explore a negotiated list between the left-wing formations and then submit that agreement to open primaries. Until now, the discussion about primaries had pitted those who wanted to choose candidates through a vote with different options against those who preferred to first close a pact between parties. The possibility advanced by elDiario.es allows, at least, to bring everyone to the negotiating table without Podemos giving up the vote it demands.
Belarra hinted at this path this Tuesday in Congress. She confirmed that Podemos will organize open primaries for those who want to register and participate, and recalled that in these processes "sometimes there is competition and other times there is not." Sources from her party admit that the candidacies could be agreed upon beforehand and then receive the endorsement of the participants. It is still unclear whether this understanding would also include the person who would head the coalition, nor is there any record that the Broad Front has accepted the formula. Podemos has proposed holding the vote on October 14 and 15.
The move comes as contacts to recompose the left accelerate. ElConstitucional.es reported this afternoon, citing sources familiar with the conversations, that Irene Montero has taken the initiative to call leaders of other organizations and that Ada Colau is acting as a bridge with Podemos. The former mayor of Barcelona has acknowledged that she has been offered to lead the Broad Front and considers it essential that the candidacy include all forces in this space. Her name gains weight precisely because of her ability to facilitate this rapprochement.
The Madrid list is still in dispute
An agreement on how to vote on the lists would still leave unresolved who occupies the top positions. According to sources consulted by this newspaper, one of the circulating options places Colau as the leader of the candidacy and reserves Montero a prominent place for Madrid, at least the second position. Más Madrid demands to head and draw up that list, and the Minister of Health, Mónica García, aspires to lead it. None of these positions are closed and the Madrid distribution can decide a good part of the negotiation.
There is also a difference regarding the scope of the pact. Podemos seeks a common candidacy for the elections and wants to maintain its autonomy as a party. The members of the Broad Front (Movimiento Sumar, Izquierda Unida, Comuns, and Más Madrid) have been building their own alliance for months. Their parliamentary spokesperson, Verónica Martínez Barbero, has defended that it is "better to agree than to compete" and has asked that a negotiation cover more than just the method for choosing candidates. The proposal of an agreed and ratified list could bring both positions closer, but it requires the parties to sit down and set the names and rules.
The clock is ticking. October 16 is the deadline to register electoral coalitions and on the 26th, candidacies must be submitted. The Broad Front hopes to resolve this week who will be its main leader, a decision that will influence conversations with Podemos. Colau has linked her possible candidacy to unity; meanwhile, Más Madrid's demand regarding the capital's list remains on the table. Podemos's opening offers a way to negotiate primaries, but the agreement that would have to be put to a vote is still to be written.
