The war within PP: Madrid.

Rajoy has declared today that it could be possible for a mayor to be candidate for Congress in March according to his party's Constitution. He gave this answer to a question by a journalist asking about the possibility of Alberto Ruiz Gallardon, mayor of Madrid, being his number 2 in the list for Madrid in the March election.

With this comment Rajoy has for the second time this year contradicted one of his own party officials. Ignacio Gonzalez, Esperanza Aguirre's right-hand man in Madrid, claimed this Sunday in El Mundo that it is incompatible to hold both positions under PP internal rules. Several months ago it was Angel Acebes, Secretary General of PP, who stated a similar position.

As this blog has been commenting for a while now there is an internal struggle within PP to position key candidates to the succession of Rajoy in case he loses the general election in March. Esperanza Aguirre, President of the region of Madrid, who controls the party in the capital, has been trying for months to block the possiblity of Ruiz Gallardon entering the national lists for Congress. Aguirre cannot become a Congresswoman while President of Madrid, Spanish law doesn't permit this possibility, so she's trying to block Gallardon from doing so. The reason for this is that it's expected that the leader of the main oppossition party must be a member of Congress to be able to debate the President in the chamber. She could be a Senator under the law but the Senate attracts substantially less media attention which would make a leadership challenge from there much more difficult. Aguirre has got the hardliners within PP on her side, Acebes positioning months ago is a clear example, Gallardon on the other side got the more moderate wing of the party.

Rajoy, is seriously considering having Gallardon as his number 2 for Madrid in March, PP strategists consider that this move would put a face of moderation in PP's lists to appeal to centrist voters. But Aguirre isn't going to let it be without putting up a fight within the party in Madrid, her own powerhouse. Under PP's Constitution, the party list for Madrid has to be approved first by Madrid's Regional Electoral Committee, which funnily enough is chaired by Ignacio Gonzalez. Rajoy and Gallardon have a tremendous battle ahead to bypass that roadblock organised by Aguirre and the party's hardliners. Furthermore, Rajoy has already distanced himself from Acebes and Zaplana. If they feel left behind in the eventuality of a leadership contest they will openly align with Aguirre against Rajoy and Gallardon and the battle could then turn out to be really nasty.