Puente said he likes Salvador Illa and that a Catalan at the head of government would square a circle, but he called succession talk premature and said Sánchez still has four years left.
Sánchez called early general elections at the start of October for 29 November, about 40 days after Puente's appearance.
The programme reached a 6.7% share and an average of 465,000 viewers on Wednesday, 21 October, its best result of the season, while La isla de las tentaciones led with 13.8% and 806,000 viewers.
On Wednesday, 21 October, Óscar Puente appeared on laSexta's Cara al show, hosted by Marc Giró, roughly 40 days before the general election that Pedro Sánchez called for 29 November. Sánchez brought the vote forward at the start of October, and the parties are already in pre-campaign mode.
Giró asked who could lead the PSOE if Sánchez left politics. Puente said such a debate was premature, but he still named Salvador Illa, president of the Generalitat of Catalonia and leader of the PSC, as the figure he likes most for the job.
“I find him a special politician, and a man who would not do any harm for a country as tense as ours.”
When Giró raised the idea of a Catalan at the head of the Spanish government, Puente joked that it would square a circle. He distinguished Carlos Cuerpo, who is not a PSOE member, from Illa, who is, saying a succession involving Illa would be very easy at this moment. Other names raised in the conversation included Nadia Calviño, Teresa Ribera and Pilar Alegría, and Puente pointed to the depth of the party's bench of leaders.
Puente nonetheless insisted that it was too early to talk about handovers.
“Since Pedro Sánchez still has four years left, let's not rush, who knows where we'll be!”
In the full interview that laSexta posted online late on 21 October, Puente said he was optimistic about the election, even though some polls point to a possible victory for the PP and Vox. He told Giró he publishes between 12 and 20 posts a day on X, and that he does not regret his insults because he always acts in self-defence. He said his account is managed by no one but himself.
On transport, Puente acknowledged the service problems that users face and linked many of them to works and the age of parts of the network. He also said the investigation into the Adamuz accident remains open.
“We need new trains and to finish the works, and in the meantime we are going to suffer a bit.”
The show gave Puente space to talk about his years as an actor. He said he spent eleven years in theatre, performing Molière's El avaro in Spain and parts of Europe, including Paris, and that the production ran for a full year in Madrid before touring other cities. He shared the stage with Eva Hache, who played a mute maid, and Diego Martín, who played the miser's son. On air he recited lines from that production, which he performed 26 years ago, and joked that he had a lot of lines back then. El País also noted that he had worked as a ski instructor and a DJ.
The format was loose. Puente rode a golf cart with journalist María Patiño, handed out Oscars to political rivals in a game set by the host, and talked about his family and his habits on social media. El Mundo described the appearance as a politician trying to look natural on a light show.
According to Wednesday's ratings, Cara al show reached a 6.7% audience share and an average of 465,000 viewers, its best result of the season. The programme's gains came alongside strong numbers for the rest of the evening, led by La isla de las tentaciones on Telecinco, which hit 13.8% and 806,000 viewers, and El Hormiguero on Antena 3, which drew 12.8% and an average of 1,561,000 viewers.
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On laSexta's Cara al show on Wednesday, 21 October, Transport Minister Óscar Puente said he likes Catalan regional president Salvador Illa as a possible successor to Pedro Sánchez, while noting that Sánchez still has four years left in office.
AI text based on reports by ABC TU DIARIO EN ESPAÑOL, LaVanguardia, El Periódico and other publishers. Published . How it is made