The announcement

The Popular Party (PP) confirmed on Saturday, 17 October, in a post on X that Xavier García Albiol, mayor of Badalona, will head its list to the Congress of Deputies in Barcelona for the general election on 29 November. The party presented him as a high-profile signing for a Spain that needs people with clear ideas. On Friday, 16 October, Albiol had told reporters in Elche, Alicante, that he would help the party with whatever it asked, provided it was compatible with his role as mayor. He has repeatedly said he will remain mayor of Badalona.

“I accept this responsibility with pride, enthusiasm and a huge sense of commitment.”

Replacing the Barcelona list leader

Albiol takes the top spot on the Barcelona list from Nacho Martín Blanco, who led the PP's Barcelona ticket in 2023 and came to the party from Ciudadanos. El Mundo reports that party leadership was unhappy with Martín Blanco's performance in the parliamentary group over the past three years. La Vanguardia describes Albiol as a figure whose electoral brand in Badalona rests more on him than on his party, and says the choice is also meant to help the party beyond Barcelona province, in Girona and Lleida. El Periódico notes that many Badalona voters back him above the PP label, including some who lean towards Catalan independence.

Vox and the battle for Catalonia

El Mundo cites a Sigma Dos poll for the paper that gives Vox an expected seven seats in Catalonia, one more than the PP. El País says the candidacy is designed to curb Vox's rise, draw votes from the PSC and let the PP grow in Catalonia, a region Feijóo sees as key to becoming prime minister after 29 November. Eldiario links the choice to Vox's growth in Catalonia and to a message that mixes immigration and insecurity, a theme Albiol pushed in Badalona more than a decade ago. El Periódico recalls that Albiol's local formula did not carry over when the PP tried to apply it across Catalonia in the 2015 and 2017 regional elections.

Albiol's agenda and his mayoralty

Albiol says he will stay mayor of Badalona, where El Mundo reports he won an absolute majority in 2023. El País reports he is likely to become a deputy, plans to give up other posts that require travel to Madrid or Brussels, and intends to seek re-election as mayor in the 2027 municipal elections. Sources close to him say his main goal in Congress will be a new anti-squatting law. El Mundo notes that Catalonia accounts for more than 40% of Spain's occupations. Albiol has pointed to the clearance of the former B9 school, which El País describes as the largest migrant settlement in Spain.

“My commitment, present and future, to my city remains intact.”

Next steps

Feijóo is due to attend a pre-campaign event on Sunday, 18 October, at the Palau de Congressos de Catalunya in Barcelona, where the candidacy will be made official. El País reports that the two men had already appeared together on 20 September at a rally in Badalona. The general election is set for 29 November.