CUP decides to run on candidacy that is “as broad as possible” for December 21 elections

Far-left CUP party held an extraordinary assembly meeting on Sunday, to decide its role in the upcoming December 21 elections. The pro-independence party was to decide on two main points. The first point was to decide on whether it would run in the upcoming election at all. The second issue on the table, to consolidate if it would run alone and lead its own candidacy or decide to join in a unitary platform with other pro-independence parties, like left-wing ERC or center PDeCAT. Ultimately, the  64.05% of CUP voters who participated opted for a candidacy that was "as broad as possible," discarding the possibility of a joint candidacy. 

Elections called with Article 155 

The upcoming December elections have been called by the Spanish government as part of the implementation of Article 155 of the Spanish Constitution, activated to seize Catalan self-rule. Indeed, the constitutional article was triggered as a response to a unilateral declaration of independence, approved in the Catalan parliament on October 27.

Now, CUP’s decision to run alone or in a joint candidacy will contribute to setting the tone for the end-of-year elections. The party choosing to not participate in a country-wide-list, which would unite pro-independence entities and potentially give the movement a better chance at winning the polls, makes a joint candidacy less likely.

A “clearly rupturist, pro-independence” and “left-wing" platform

The assembly, in which a total of 1,206 people participated, ended with the decision that the party would indeed run in the elections, and it would do so by leading their own candidacy. Their platform, as stated in their social media, is to be “as broad as possible,” one that is also “clearly rupturist, pro-independence” and “left-wing.”

91% of those who voted agreed that the CUP should run in the elections, and 64.05% voted for the party to continue leading the candidacy. One of the options that voters could choose, that of running in the elections as part of a list without politicians, earned 12.59% support. Meanwhile, the option to participate in a coalition or list to "defend the Republic of Catalonia" as well as the amnesty and freedom of political prisoners garnered 21.72% of the votes.

4,000 party members were originally set to participate in the assembly. On the day of the meeting, 1,206 individuals participated. Out of the 1,125 that were eligible to cast their vote, 1,099 did so.

Participants were asked to answer two questions on the same ballot. The first, to determine whether the CUP should run in the December 21 elections: the results ended with 91.63% for yes, 7.83% for no, 0.36% left blank, and 0.18% not valid. The second question proposed three scenarios for the upcoming elections: a country-wide list without politicians, a country-wide list based on the defense of the Catalan republic and amnesty and release of prisoners, and a candidacy led by the CUP itself. The third option received the most votes, at 64.05%.