Puigdemont ready to head joint civil candidacy in Dec 21 election

Catalan President Carles Puigdemont, ousted by the Spanish government, is willing to stand at the head of a joint civil candidacy in the upcoming elections, as proposed on Friday by the Ateneu Barcelonès. In an exclusive interview with the Catalan News Agency (ACN in Catalan) in Brussels, Puigdemont said that he was in favour of the idea of a joint candidacy. “I identify with an idea of these characteristics, which rather than looking to the legitimate aspirations of each party rather seeks to protect the greater good in these elections, which is democracy,” he said.

Calling it everyone’s “moral duty” to contribute, the Catalan president "in exile" in Belgium said the joint candidacy initiative “would be good news,” before adding, “I am ready to contribute to making it possible.” Insisting that “we are in such an exceptional moment that exceptional measures are needed,” Puigdemont said that he was convinced that a great many people in Catalonia would also welcome the idea. The Spanish government has called Catalan elections for December 21 as part of its imposition of direct rule on Catalonia.