change sides
Instability in the region fuels debates about the next political moves. The province has a notable portion of the education sector supporting a bold shift into national party politics. The People’s Party is rallying its ranks for the municipal and district elections next year. This shift could determine the fate of several key positions, including the possible return of the current mayor of Sant Joan d’Alacant, Santiago Rome, to the PP fold. In the l’Alacantí area, Carlos Mazón and others have already announced their mayorship goals in the main towns, except Sant Joan. Román remains open to Cs’ offer to stay on the table, yet there is no formal announcement about a possible return to the PP when asked about it.
change sides
Observers think the orange party will not easily pry Román away, and a switch by the current mayor could mirror the 2018 turn in San Vicente del Raspeig, where Pachi Pascual moved from Cs back to PP after a brief separation in September. Yet at the national level, there is momentum that pushes liberal leadership to rethink strategies. The signature move by the mayor of Badajoz, who shifted from Cs to PP, has convinced some who still believe in the orange project that anything can happen and old alliances can be challenged.
In Sant Joan, the situation remains unclear for now. Cs quickly stated that Román would head the slate, but nothing has been officially confirmed. The rumor mill points to a possible return to PP, a topic long debated. It is worth recalling that when Román took the helm in the middle of last year amid a deal between the orange party and the PSOE, he had backing from Mazón and the Alicante mayor, Luis Barcala, with a cadence of mutual signals between Román and Mazón whose friendship traces back to their Nuevas Generaciones days.
Beyond political theater in l’Alacantí, the rapprochement between the PP and Cs is echoing across the country. Some early outcomes reveal the anxiety felt by both parties. In Granja de Rocamora, four popular councilors challenged the current liberal mayor, Javier Mora, seeking the top spot for next year’s municipal elections. Mora later waived his record, a sign of the shifting sand under local governance.
“Re-establishment”
Meanwhile, the strategy described as rebuilding the Cs remains in its early stages, with many members drifting away in disappointment. Decisions such as the one by Badajoz mayor Ignacio Gragera, who faced hard times for supporters of the Rivera project, suggest a grim horizon for the party. The friction between Inés Arrimadas and Edmundo Bal also does little to ease tensions.
The rifts caused by the movement in Orihuela are still raw. The controversy led to the precautionary suspension of a provincial coordinator, Javier Gutiérrez, who continues as the Cs spokesperson in the Provincial Assembly. The shift toward PP remains noticeable. The arrival of Juan Ignacio López-Bas from Oriolan to the provincial board did not realign the direction in Alicante, and it is still unknown who will lead the regional slate.
Orange candidates for Benidorm, Torrevieja and Dolores
Ciudadanos announced on Thursday the leaders who will top the lists next year in several municipalities across the province, including Benidorm led by Victoria Villar, Torrevieja with Carlos Hurtado, and Dolores under Víctor Manuel Gomis.