The left closes 'in extremis' an electoral coalition with the name: Ara Més - Broad Front

PalmaAlthough they have avoided media noise, the pace of Ara Més's negotiations with the parties to the left of the PSIB has been "frenetic". "I have lost track of time, with so many meetings," assured a source from the negotiating team after nearly two weeks of tug-of-war. About to exhaust the deadline to register the pacts with the Central Electoral Board (JEC), the eco-sovereignists have finally closed an agreement with the parties integrated into the Broad Front – Sumar and United Left – to run as a coalition for Congress, and another with the PSIB to go together to the Senate.

According to sources from the negotiating team, at the time of this edition's closing, the coalition for Congress is called Ara Més - Broad Front. Unlike 2023, when the pact with Yolanda Díaz's space was named Sumar Més, on this occasion the name of the Balearic federation has been prioritized. On the other hand, the image on the ballot will foreseeably be a square logo, where Ara Més appears at the top and Broad Front in the bottom half. In contrast, in 2023, a photograph of the candidate was chosen. It remains to be seen what relationship the eco-sovereignist deputy will have with the Broad Front parliamentary group. According to knowledgeable sources, the executive of MÉS per Mallorca conveyed to the base that they would try to agree on freedom of vote regarding "the Balearic agenda".

The details of the coalition

These latest details about the coalition are in line with what has been the priority of Ara Més since the early election was announced on October 5th: putting the Islands at the center. The deputy of Més per Menorca, Josep Castells, had already warned that it had to be done in a “Balearic key” and they would not participate in a “state-level monstrosity.” The eco-sovereignists set as a condition that the single list of the left be a coalition, as they have finally achieved. They also demanded that the candidacy be led by a candidate from Ara Més, which has distanced Podemos, who demanded a rotation of the deputy after two years of the legislature, an unacceptable condition for the eco-sovereignists. The agreement with Sumar and Esquerra Unida obtained the endorsement of the membership of Més per Menorca, MÉS per Mallorca, and Ara Eivissa, and sources from Ara Més take for granted that they already have the seat in Congress secured.

But with Podemos out of the equation, the goal of building a unitary list of all the forces on the left has not been achieved. At the closing of this edition, negotiations with the purple party were still underway, but the deadline to register a coalition that included the group led by Lucía Muñoz in the Islands ended on Friday at midnight. According to sources present at the talks, the “Gabriel Rufián factor” –who has allied with the purple party to campaign– has complicated the negotiations in the Balearic Islands. "They saw themselves with more negotiating strength, and they have asked for impossible things," they point out. However, when Podemos gave up demanding a rotation of the candidate, it ran into the obstacle of Madrid. The state-level Broad Front (Front Ampli) has not given its Balearic representatives free rein to negotiate outside of the pacts in the rest of the State.

On the other hand, it remains to be seen how the candidacy agreed upon with the PSIB for the Senate will be formed. The socialists have already announced their candidates: for Mallorca and Menorca, the spokesperson and the former president of the respective island councils, Catalina Cladera and Joana Barceló. While Juanjo Ferrer would repeat for Ibiza and senator Neus Massanet would run for Formentera. In contrast, Ara Més and the Broad Front have not given details about their options, which depend on the negotiations of the lists for Congress.

Who will be number one in Congress?

The debate over the head of the list for Congress has not yet been moved to the internal bodies. However, among those tipped are the current deputy, Vicenç Vidal, and the spokesperson for Ara Més, Carme Gomila. While Vidal has the support of a sector of MÉS per Mallorca, Gomila has endorsements in the executive branch and the cadres of Manacor, and a fluid relationship with representatives of Més per Menorca and Ara Eivissa. As president of Esquerra Illes and in charge of political relations at MÉS per Mallorca, she embodies the will to build unique candidacies for the Balearic left. For his part, Vidal has the experience of having been in Congress with the Sumar parliamentary group, although the relationship with this group has not always been satisfactory for the sovereignists. The grassroots voted on two occasions on the possibility of leaving the parliamentary group, which they considered too centralist.