In the preceding chapter, the Junts party, a separatist faction with its own distinct agenda, has decisively shaped Spain’s political dialogue. Carles Puigdemont, the sole exiled leader within the pro-independence coalition, positioned himself as a stabilizing force within Congress after the events of 23J. He could influence Pedro Sánchez’s path, either enabling new elections or obstructing them, and he could even affect the prospective configuration of the government should a new administration form. The choice among the PP, PSOE, or another outcome rests, in essence, with the Junts alliance.
The Junts party is not merely a participant but a pivot point for multiple potential futures. The perception that every possible result must pass through its hands can tempt observers to believe the party always has the final say. The heirs of Convergència, often described as radicalized, steer Spain’s political process through democratic paradoxes. Yet they must manage the implications of their victories, acknowledging that they are actors in a larger system, not sole arbiters of fortune. When commentators on social media declare rising tensions and shifting dynamics abroad, those assessments usually reference more than just the party’s opponents—the entire parliamentary landscape is implicated.
There is little surprise if Junts declines to back an amnesty or a referendum, a stance that would leave significant questions unresolved if their political capital were depleted. Puigdemont’s apparent nervousness stems from the need to keep any pro-consultation mechanism active while he remains abroad, aware that martyrdom has its limits. He must calibrate how far his leverage can stretch before the situation becomes untenable, all while not letting the current optimism about his leadership distort a fragile, temporary phase that may simply have been reminded by the prospect of fresh elections. To complicate matters, other political players have used colorful metaphors to describe the wider strategic contest, yet Sánchez remains a central figure in the ongoing political calculations. The former head of the Generalitat can be weighed against the more cautious or more ambitious impulses seen in other leaders across the political spectrum. Logically, the next chapter could revolve around resolving the amnesty question without a referendum, though politics often defies predictable logic.