The first deputy of the Valencian Government and the minister of Culture and Sport, Vicente Barrera of Vox, makes his debut in Alicante this Tuesday. He will not speak about his official responsibilities during this visit. The purpose of his presence in the provincial capital is to meet with residents in the northern area. He will be accompanied by Elisa Núñez, the minister of Justice and Interior. The party’s media advisory for the meeting left little to the imagination about the topics to be discussed: uncontrolled illegal immigration, insecurity, crime, and occupations. Vox clearly lays out the agenda and the themes it aims to emphasize to attract potential voters.
Barrera and Núñez will meet with representatives from Alicante District Board 2 to discuss alleged public security concerns. The session will include Francisco Camacho, the district board president; Celia Campelo, head of the Juan XXIII neighborhood association; and representatives from another twelve neighborhood groups within District 2. Vox representatives in the regional council plan to address the security issues affecting the Colonia Requena and Juan XXIII neighborhoods, according to the invitation. After the meeting, a neighborhood tour of Juan XXIII is slated.
During the walk, community representatives are expected to speak, giving frontline testimony about the situation in Alicante’s districts. Barrera and Núñez will be joined by a sizable contingent from Vox’s second tier of the regional government, including three undersecretaries who also come from Vox. These are Eduardo Ruiz, secretary for Justice; Javier Bazán, secretary for Victims’ Services and Access to Justice; and Javier Montero, secretary for Security and Emergencies. Four Vox council members in the Alicante City Council—Carmen Robledillo, Mario Ortolá, Óscar Castillo, and Juan Utrera—and Ana Vega, the former spokeswoman in the Valencian Parliament, who now serves as Vox’s deputy group leader, are also expected to attend.
LGBTQ Collective
The frequency of Barrera’s media appearances since becoming vice president has been limited. Earlier this month, he briefly distanced himself from the regional government’s tourism campaign titled Orgull Comunitat, which promotes LGBTQ rights. He argued that the campaign framed the left’s ideological stance. The initiative was launched by the regional executive in collaboration with the president, Carlos Mazón, and the deputy president, Susana Camarero. Barrera stated that Vox would not participate in it.
His presence in Alicante to discuss issues of occupation and crime in the northern area follows Vox prompting the mayor, Luis Barcala, to concede to establishing an anti-occupancy office in the city budget. According to the vice mayor, Manuel Villar, Vox’s policies—also including the creation of an office to assist pregnant women facing economic and social hardship—improved the draft municipal accounts presented by the Popular Party (PP).
Recently, political allies have clashed over security and occupation matters. The PP has advanced a Senate proposal to combat illegal occupations, citing Valencia’s 2021 data showing 1,779 property occupations in the region. The proposal includes 24-hour eviction, barring registrations at occupied homes, and expedited trials, aiming to shrink Vox’s electoral space. The conversation continues as parties debate the best tools to address urban safety and housing concerns, with Vox positioning itself as a strong voice on these hotly debated topics [Source: regional coverage].