The sentence of the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC) on Laura Borràs that will be known today at noon opens several fronts in Junts per Catalunya if its president is disqualified. On the one hand, there is the Parliament, which has been in an interim situation since the leader was suspended as a deputy in July, and, on the other, her leadership in the party, which may be touched. In the direction of JxCat they are inclined to propose another candidate for the presidency of the Catalan Chamber and that the leader continue at the head of the formation.
Although she is sentenced to a penalty of disqualification, the statutes of Junts, after the last congress, held last summer, provide that her situation does not have to be analyzed until there is a final sentence, that is, until there is no resolution from the Court Supreme. When this stage is reached, it is up to the training guarantees commission, headed by the lawyer Magda Oranich – who collided with Borràs in the internal crisis over the case of Francesc de Dalmases – to issue an opinion on his situation and whether his case may or may not be considered lawfare. That body, foreseeably, will later send its report to the executive so that it can adopt a decision on her organic charges.
Despite the fact that the TSJC’s decision is not firm, it is no secret that Borràs arouses passions among some cadres of the party, and blisters in others. The general secretary of the formation, Jordi Turull, however, has supported the president of the party at all times and has publicly stated that the court that has tried her has not been impartial and that the sentence was written in advance. On the other hand, in private, various cadres and leaders of the more possibilistic and pragmatic wing of JxCat – which avoided public displays of support for the leader during the trial and has opted for silence as a general rule – show their discomfort at the fact that Borràs continues to lead the organization and they separate their legal case from those that affect the pro-independence leaders for the procés. In addition, these cadres believe that their president is no longer an electoral asset as she once was and that she will not be again.
With these wickerwork, it cannot be ruled out that this sector will make a move to demand a step back and a resignation from the president of Junts. During the trial, some leaders had lamented sotto voce that Borràs’s image affected the project, and considered that she should have resigned in July, when she was suspended. If this sector moves, it is possible that the melon of its organic positions will be opened before there is a final sentence, but in the Borràs environment they count on there being no movement before the municipal elections on May 28. With a better electoral scenario than expected a few months ago, in Junts they do not want stridency or shocks during the campaign and the pre-campaign, and it is most likely that those in favor of maneuvering will wait for another more opportune moment. “The most convergent thing would be for her to continue as president even if she is convicted,” said a leader the day the trial began.
At the institutional level, if the verdict of the TSJC condemns him, according to the previous cases of the former deputy of the CUP Pau Juvillà in this legislature and the former president of the Generalitat Quim Torra in the previous one, the Central Electoral Board will withdraw the act of deputy in Borràs and will issue the credentials of the following candidate from the Junts en Barcelona list for the 2021 elections, which is the former leader of the Democratic Union of Catalonia and current leader of Democrats of Catalonia, Antoni Castellà.
At this point, JxCat will have to decide what to do. Since July, when the provisions of the institution’s regulations for cases related to corruption were applied, the presidency of the Catalan Chamber has been vacant and Borràs was listed as the suspended president, an unprecedented situation. If Borràs loses his credentials, a new president of the institution must be elected and Esquerra Republicana has assured in recent weeks that its intention is that the presidency of the Parliament falls into the hands of the pro-independence groups, while ruling out supporting the PSC in this issue. Therefore, if what has been said is fulfilled, JxCat could once again have the presidency of the institution and that is the option for which the party leadership is inclined. If there is an understanding between Republicans and post-convergents, there will not be an alternative majority in the Chamber. To replace Borràs, the name of Anna Erra, vice president of the party, sounded from the outset.
A few days ago Aurora Madaula, who is part of the circle closest to Borràs and is the second secretary of the Table, hinted in an interview that Junts could choose not to propose anyone to replace her as a complaint about the situation of the leader of JxCat. However, this week the parliamentary spokesperson for the formation, Mònica Sales, disavowed him by stating that no decision had yet been made. Sources from the parliamentary group had also indicated that the secretary of the Bureau had overreached. When the matter arises in the groups of Junts, the answer is “river, bridge”. A mantra of the process to not anticipate events and not advance scenarios, but the decision has been made.
