ERC leader on Barcelona City Council announces resignation 

The leader of pro-independence Esquerra Republicana (ERC) on Barcelona City Council, Ernest Maragall, has announced he will step down as a councilor in December. 

Maragall told a council session on Friday of his decision to resign, one that he takes "consciously and voluntarily" and that it is "strictly personal," he said. 

Party sources say the decision was taken last week and was subsequently shared with his inner circle and with the ERC leadership. 

His resignation will be formalized at the next municipal meeting, scheduled for December 22. 

"Ernest Maragall has always put the city, its citizens and the political project above everything, and remains steadfast in his commitment to the city," the party said. 

"He will continue to work tirelessly for Barcelona from a position removed from the political front line, as the vast majority of citizens do."   

The next candidate on Esquerra Barcelona's electoral list is Rosa Suriñach, Maragall's current chief of staff, who also served as a councilor in the last few months of the previous term. 

Maragall, aged 80, was the oldest councilor to be elected in May. He previously served as education minister and foreign minister in the Catalan government. He left the Socialists in 2012 over their stance on Catalan independence and joined ERC in 2018.