Spanish government reached out to Constitutional Court to discuss Puigdemont's reinstatement

Members of the Spanish government reached out to Constitutional Court judges on Saturday before they met to decide on Carles Puigdemont’s disputed reinstatement as Catalan president, which is expected to take place at the Catalan Parliament on Tuesday, as reported by the Spanish newspaper El País.

“There was no pressure because no member of the Constitutional Court would allow it, but they [Spanish government] did tell them of the dramatic situation in which democratic institutions would find themselves if Puigdemont was sworn-in and they were forced to act afterwards,” a source told the newspaper. “They appealed to the national interest.”

Last Friday, the executive in Madrid challenged Puigdemont’s candidacy for president, which had been announced by the Catalan Parliament president Roger Torrent. The Spanish government went ahead with its appeal despite the Council of State—an advisory body—rejecting the possibility of acting before the investiture effectively took place.