Partit dels Socialistes de Catalunya nominate Montilla for regional elections

The executive body of the Partit dels Socialistes de Catalunya (PSC) made the unanimous decision yesterday to propose José Montilla, the first secretary of the party and Spain’s minister for industry, as its primary candidate for election as a future president of the Generalitat de Catalunya.

Catalonia’s current president, the PSC’s Pasqual Maragall, announced after the recent referendum vote on a new statute of autonomy for the region that he was not seeking re-election to the office.

The national committee of the PSC is expected to ratify the choice of the executive on 15 July. It is not yet known who will be the second choice for Barcelona, though the full list will be known during September. Antoni Castells, the Generalitat’s minister for finance and the economy, and Montserrat Tura, interior minister, are both said to be in the running.

Party spokesman Miquel Iceta said that the list will be made ‘in September’ once Montilla has been formally named as a candidate to compete in elections to the Generalitat, expected to take place in October.

Iceta stated that Montilla had shown that he was ‘predisposed’ to be nominated as a candidate and that until 15 July he will talk with ‘party leaders, business representatives and unions in order to outline his electoral proposals.’

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