A joint stage in Nou Barris

On Saturday, 24 October, ERC and Podemos held their first joint pre-campaign event in the Plaza Major of Nou Barris, a working-class district of Barcelona that ABC describes as largely Spanish-speaking. The rally, held under the slogan "Casa. Vida. Futur", brought together ERC's list leader for the general election, Gabriel Rufián, and Podemos's candidate, Irene Montero, with ERC president Oriol Junqueras and Podemos general secretary Ione Belarra also present. El País put the crowd at close to 2,000 people, with an average age well below what is usual at such events. The two parties also struck an electoral pact: Podemos will not stand in Catalonia, though some of its candidates appear as independents on ERC lists, while Rufián campaigns for Podemos in the rest of Spain, according to El País.

Rivalry on the left over alliances

The rally also exposed a split on the left. Montero argued that a PSOE government backed by a left resembling the PSOE would not address citizens' problems, saying:

“A left that runs on the same ballot as the PSOE will not fix the problems.”

Rufián took the opposite line. He argued that the PSOE itself was built by forces such as ERC, Bildu, BNG, Podemos and Compromís, and said he wanted a PSOE government subject to those parties. He also said the PSC does not deserve the reward of the useful vote, and that ERC had been the most anti-fascist force, a jab at critics inside his own party who opposed a pact with the Spanish left. In Madrid, at a demonstration for public pensions, Ada Colau declined to criticise ERC or Podemos when asked about the alliance:

“We are not going to enter into criticism between progressive parties. We are very clear who the adversary is.”

Colau named the PP and Vox as the adversary, accusing them of wanting to damage wages and pensions.

Feijóo, the Equality Ministry and Montero's attack

On Friday, 23 October, Feijóo said in remarks on Cadena SER that he would scrap the Ministry of Equality and move its powers to another ministry if he governs after the 29N vote. Montero accused him of questioning women's rights and said that voting for the PP means voting for machismo and violence. In Girona, Salvador Illa said Feijóo calls himself a feminist while seeking to eliminate the Ministry of Equality and Feminism, a plan Colau also rejected.

Catalan language and the European cycle

Speaking in Girona, Catalan government president Salvador Illa warned Feijóo and Vox leader Santiago Abascal that the Catalan language and Catalonia's self-government were not up for negotiation. He said the two leaders were becoming alike because both proposed a regression. Illa described the election as the first of a European electoral cycle that will continue with France, Italy and Poland, and said Catalonia would again be decisive, as he claimed it was in 2023. He framed the choice in stark terms:

“There are two alternatives. There are not three or four, two.”

He set those options as a progressive government led by Pedro Sánchez or an Abascal-Feijóo government. Culture minister Ernest Urtasun, second on the Frente Amplio list in Barcelona, told the Ara newspaper that the future of the Catalan language is at stake and that a PP and Vox government would not hesitate to attack it. He also said that Junts' stance of equidistance is untenable given the prospect of fascism entering the Spanish government.

Rufián's case against Sánchez and the right

Rufián attacked Sánchez over housing, saying the prime minister has governed for six years and could have done much more, and mocking how well he came across in his appearance with Broncano. He warned that a right-wing majority of 210 deputies could push constitutional changes, the outlawing of parties and the dismantling of public services such as health care. He invoked Abascal as interior minister to illustrate what a PP and Vox government would mean for Catalonia, and cited Julio Anguita to justify building bridges with other progressive forces. Rufián acknowledged he had been criticised from all sides, including within ERC and by Junts. The general election is set for 29 November.