Socialists confident of an agreement with UM

PALMA
LAST night, the Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE) was confident of reaching an agreement with the Majorcan Union (UM) before Saturday, which would oust the Partido Popular (PP), which lost its majority in the May 27 elections, from the Balearic government, Council of Majorca and Palma city council.

Socialist party sources said that the agreement on the Balearic government will be one of the first to be made as the UM is considering a global negotiation and the matter of who will be Mayor of Palma has to be solved before Saturday, the day on which the new town councils have to be formed.

The PP candidate for Mayor, Catalina Cirer, received the most votes on May 27, but needs the votes of the UM in order to rule. But if the UM supports the PSOE, the new Mayor will be Aina Calvo of the PSOE.

It is not clear who will head the Council of Majorca. The PSOE candidate is Francina Armengol, the post is currently held by Maria Antonia Munar.
The party sources said that agreement is likely to be reached in the Balearics before Navarre.
On Monday, UM leader Maria Antonia Munar said that “providing all conditions are equal” her party inclines towards a pact with the PSOE-PSIB and the Bloc per Mallorca coalition (Majorcan Socialist Party, United Left-Greens and Catalan Republican Left), although she stressed that nothing had been closed.

She added that there was a “a certain desire for change” as shown by the PP losing the absolute majority in the chief governing bodies of the Balearics.

Biel Barceló, leader of the Bloc per Mallorca coalition, also expressed his confidence of signing a pact which would lead to a progressive government, although he called for “prudence,” claiming the situation was “still open” and the PP also stood a chance of reaching an agreement with UM.

He said that the statement by Munar, regarding “equal conditions” was positive, and said that there was a feeling of change in the air. “It was good news for a future progressive pact,” he said.

He applauded the fact that the three groups which could form a left wing and nationalist government -the PSOE-PSIB, Bloc and UM -had expressed their intention of establishing a pact, but said it was necessary to advance carefully, “without taking anything for granted.” He went on to say “the PP has its votes and also has possibilities of making a pact, so it should not be ruled out that it will wait until the last minute before playing its cards.” However, he repeated his confidence that a left wing-nationalist pact could be reached. “What is clear is that the PP has lost the absolute majority in the leading institutions, and it is evident that the situation is open,” he affirmed.
In Madrid, Miriam Muñoz took her oath of office as deputy in Congress for the Balearics, replacing Francesc Antich, the secretary general of the PSOE-PSIB, who renounced his seat on June 3, in order to run for election as leader of the Balearic government.

Muñoz was also elected a Palma city councillor on May 27.