The definitive break between Podemos and Sumar in Congress, and now the rejection of the bases of the purple formation in Galicia to participate in a coalition condition the possibilities of a pact in the Basque Country. To the complicated negotiation between the two formations, led by two parties that faced each other four years ago in the Podem-Euskadi primaries, is now added the specter that militancy could deactivate the agreement that is presented. The context of the negotiation has been wrapped up in a matter of weeks and only the prospect of an electoral disaster plays in favor of the agreement: if they are presented separately they will have a very difficult time obtaining parliamentary representation.
If just over a month ago there was optimism regarding the possibilities of an agreement, at this moment the restlessness is evident, in view of the prospect that, beyond the agreement between the managements of the formations, the ratification by the bases can become a problem. At the moment, the first deadline for the agreement set by Podemos, which wanted to close this file in December, has not been met.
Both from the ranks of the purple formation and from Sumar point out that the negotiation is alive and underline the desire for an agreement. The leader of Yolanda Díaz’s formation in the Basque Country, Lander Martínez, deputy for Bizkaia, insisted publicly yesterday, on RNE, that “the best thing for the progressive space is that there is a single broad candidacy”, although he admitted that what has happened in Galicia “cools down some elements of the negotiation”.
The points that are making the agreement difficult have to do, above all, with the designation of the candidate for lehendakari and the representation of each formation in the lists. Podemos has proposed Miren Gorrotxategi, speaker of the Basque Parliament, while Sumar has not quite given his approval to this option. The reluctance has been around for some time, since Gorrotxategi was the one who faced Lander Martínez in the 2020 primaries. This university professor prevailed, and her opponent ended up resigning.
Now the current management of Podemos, with Gorrotxategi and Pilar Garrido at the helm, is seeing faces again with part of the previous management of the formation, today in Sumar. Sources with full solvency point out that there is a fear that the agreement they can reach will be rejected by the bases. The echo of what has happened in Galicia. There is another fear, with sufficient grounds, although in this case it works in favor of the agreement: it is the fear of being left without representation. It is the great incentive to seal the alliance. The question is whether it will be enough.
