Spain ‘will not consent’ to swearing in Sànchez from prison

While the Spanish government welcomed Carles Puigdemont’s decision to step aside as the candidate for the Catalan presidency, it is not thrilled with his proposal that jailed MP Jordi Sànchez take his place. A spokesman for Mariano Rajoy’s executive said on Friday that the government “will not consent” to any form of remote investiture or swearing-in through a representative. Former activist leader Sànchez has so far been held in custody for 136 days while awaiting trial to face charges of sedition and rebellion.

Government spokesman Íñigo Méndez de Vigo and justice minister Rafael Catalá appeared before the press on Friday afternoon to respond to the proposal that Sànchez, who ran as a candidate on Puigdemont’s Junts per Catalunya ticket in the December election, should take the dismissed leader’s place as the presidential candidate. Català said that whether Sànchez remains behind bars depends on the Supreme Court judge overseeing his case, while swearing him in from prison “goes against all logic.”