The Alicante group of the PSOE set a deadline this week for submitting delegates lists ahead of the Extraordinary Congress that PSPV will host in Benicàssim, a town in Castellón, from the 22nd to the 24th of the month. Unless something major changes, two slates are expected. One slate is led by the faction controlled by former senator Ángel Franco and the “sanchistas,” two camps that have clashed in public disputes over the past years. The other slate represents a united front of the municipal spokesperson, who is still PSPV president Ana Barceló, and Eva Montesinos, the local group’s vice secretary and former councilor.
The “sanchistas” and the “franquistas” have engaged in negotiations to shape the ticket they will present on Thursday. The critical demands of the faction that has challenged Franco and his decades-long grip on the Alicante group demand that former councilor Maria José Adsuar head the slate. However, sources from this faction insist that, at most, Miguel Millana, aligned with Franco and serving as the general secretary, might occupy the number one spot. But no other socialist would be allowed to lead, they insist.
Another major demand from the sanchista wing is to secure 30 percent of the seats, and to have those seats placed at the top of the slate. If Adsuar takes the lead, they want every other odd-numbered position to fill the quota of 30 percent. If the former councilor is the number two, which seems more likely, the even-numbered positions would be allocated to their side until their representation reaches the quota. From this faction they argue that they do not want Franco to string them along with late slate numbers, especially given the fear that Barceló and Montesinos could surpass the 20 percent vote threshold and gain a portion of the 24 delegates that Alicante’s group will finally have after the most recent census adjustment, which added one more representative for Benicàssim. If their demands are unmet, the sanchistas say they will consider any scenario on Thursday, and in line with the PSOE’s history in Alicante over recent decades, it would not be surprising if the negotiations fell apart.
Meanwhile, the franquistas are calling for unity and for a single slate to be filed. They still hope to convince Barceló and Montesinos not to present their list. To push this, Millana will meet on Thursday with the municipal spokesperson. Yet Barceló and the group’s second-in-command maintain their plan to push ahead with a contest.
Ahead of the vote, observers note that the outcome will hinge on the ability of both sides to negotiate acceptable positions and to balance loyalty to past leaders with the party’s current needs in Alicante. The situation reflects a familiar pattern in the local PSOE landscape, where control dynamics, alliance choices, and the distribution of delegation slots can determine the party’s trajectory at the regional and national levels. Analysts caution that if the rift widens, it could complicate the party’s ability to present a unified front in Benicàssim and beyond, with potential implications for cohesion and strategy in the provincial chapter. (Source: local political coverage and informed insiders)