Extremadura Socialists Present Lists for December 21st Elections

José Ángel Gallardo, the strongman of the Extremadura PSOE, holds the party's most important mayoralty in the region. Regardless, the Extremadura PSOE faces the December 21st elections with unfavorable polls, which point to what would be the worst result in the history of the socialists in one of their strongholds. The party has confirmed that Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will be next Wednesday, December 19th, at the Hotel Las Lomas in Mérida to support Gallardo and present the Extremadura PSOE lists to the party members. Consensus has reigned, at least on paper, between the interests of the regional and provincial apparatus, which was mostly distant from Gallardo. The list for the province of Badajoz features a major surprise: Judith Olivares, the mayor of Hernán Cortés, unknown to the public until now, who will be number two. As expected, the Secretary General, Miguel Ángel Gallardo, who will face trial in February on charges of malfeasance and influence peddling – all related to the contracting in the Badajoz Provincial Council of the Prime Minister's brother, David Sánchez – holds the top spot in the province. The five socialists who resigned from their seats in the Assembly of Extremadura to make way for Gallardo himself, an act for which the justice system found him guilty of legal fraud, will not have a place in the new lists. Further down the list are the new Secretary General of the PSOE in Badajoz, Manolo Borrego – number three – and several profiles very close to Gallardo, such as Soraya Vega, Manuel Mejías, and Piedad Álvarez. The absence of Marisol Mateos, who was number two in 2023 and has been an important and highly visible figure within the party alongside Guillermo Fernández Vara, is striking. Likewise, on the other side, the presence of the mayor of Mérida, Antonio Rodríguez Osuna, in 15th place is noteworthy. He is accompanied by Lara Garlito, who was Gallardo's rival in the early primaries where he managed to prevail. Álvaro Sánchez Cotrina, the young leader of the PSOE in the province of Cáceres and a well-placed figure for the future, as reported by ABC, is number one on the Cáceres list. The lists for the provinces of Badajoz and Cáceres are now official, after receiving 98% internal support. The Extremadura Socialist Party now has its chosen candidates for the December 21st elections. None of the five 'sacrificed' members, all of mid-to-low profile within the party, will be on the ballot on December 21st. Otherwise, there is a significant renewal with new faces loyal to the Secretary General, but no major surprises. There was no prize.