The coalition between CUP and Guanyem for the February 2021 elections cost a lot to forge and, almost from the beginning, it became a marriage of convenience, with a particularly tortuous relationship between Dolors Sabater and the part of the CUP closest to Endavant. A relationship that is now up in the air, after the departure of Eulàlia Reguant and the future march of Dolors Sabaterwhich will leave his party without a voice in the Catalan Chamber.
The leader of Guanyem – and formally president of the CUP parliamentary group – announced in June, when she was elected councilor of the city council of Badalona, her resignation from the act of deputy, since the CUP’s ethical code does not allow more than one institutional position to be compatible. However, three months later, her resignation has not yet been made effective. Sabater already warned the ‘cupaires’ that she first wanted to finish part of the parliamentary work started, as well as manage her replacement, and her final departure is not expected until late autumn.
However, Reguant’s departure, announced this Sunday, has caused a certain domino effect and has precipitated the debate. The next on the list was the former mayor of Cerdanyola and also a member of Guanyem, Carles Escola, who was the one who -in theory- had to relieve Sabater. However, he has resigned from the record for personal reasons. Two more people have also done so and, finally, Mar Ampordanès, until now advisor to the ‘cupaires’ in the Chamber, has taken Reguant’s place.
“If the legislature had a folder that seemed to us to be an opportunity, we would have done balancing exercises so that it would take the minutes. But that is not the case,” sources from Guanyem assure EL PERIÓDICO, in relation to the situation of the former mayor and his added consequence once Sabater’s departure is completed, which is Guanyem’s loss of weight within the coalition.
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The same sources assure that they are in internal negotiations to “resolve the situation” and avoid disappearing from the Catalan Chamber, but they avoid clarifying what possibilities are being considered. However, it does not seem on the table that Sabater will change his plans and stay in Parliament, nor that he will force himself to resign more than a dozen people from the list in order for a new member from Guanyem to enter. In fact, CUP sources remind that the minutes are personal and that resignations cannot be requested.
Another question raised by the departure of Reguant and the future of Sabater is how the parliamentary group will be reorganized. Sabater held the position of group president and Reguant held the position of spokesperson, although the ‘cupaires’ have always chosen not to stick to titles and make a more choral representation. The deputy with the most points to take the reins, because he is the one who has the most draws and the most experience within the group, is Carles Rierawho is currently third secretary of the Parliament’s Board.