The extraordinary events of this week have raised the possibility of a new election for the Balearic parliament. Vox, whose support for President Prohens Partido Popular is crucial, have been split by a conflict that was in the background for several months before it erupted on Monday.
Five 'rebel' deputies in parliament, led by chief parliamentary spokesperson, Idoia Ribas, expelled two other deputies from the parliamentary group - the president of the party in the Balearics, Patricia de las Heras, and the president (speaker) of parliament, Gabriel Le Senne.
The motives for doing so lie in part with adhering to instructions of the party at national level but also with tensions within the regional organisation that can be traced back to before the elections in May last year. Essentially, De las Heras and Le Senne are aligned with the national party; the rebels are not, and they face possible expulsion from Vox.
The agreement for government that was struck between the PP and Vox was based on the eight Vox deputies who were elected last May. The PP with 25 seats were therefore assured of a majority (30) in pushing ahead with a legislative agenda, subject to Vox approval and demands.
As of Monday before the expulsion of De las Heras and Le Senne, there were no longer eight Vox deputies. There were seven, Xisco Cardona having quit the parliamentary group in October in a row over approval of the 2024 budget. He remains in parliament as unattached (or non-accredited). The same status is now what faces De las Heras and Le Senne, and where the speaker is concerned, this creates a problem regarding whether he can continue as speaker or not.
Le Senne insists that he will not step down. Other parties, the PP plus the opposition PSOE and Més, have called for urgent reports from parliament's legal services to seek to clarify the situation. The agreement between the PP and Vox established that Vox would have the presidency of parliament, but parliament faces an unprecedented situation. Unlike when Xelo Huertas of Podemos was removed as speaker, it is the parliamentary group who have expelled Le Senne and not the party; Huertas was booted out of Podemos.
So, there is an institutional crisis in respect of parliament's governance, which may be resolved by the rebels agreeing to back a PP candidate to become speaker; Ribas intimated on Wednesday that they may accept this, while also saying that the rebels will propose their own candidate (quite possibly her). Ribas added: "Whoever the future president of the parliament is, we guarantee the stability of the government of the Balearic Islands." As there are five of them, then Prohens is assured of a majority.
Even so, there is what may lie ahead, not least between the Vox factions, both of which accuse the other of being "turncoats". Ribas said of Le Senne on Wednesday that he is the "real turncoat". He had "kidnapped" the parliamentary governing board "by agreeing with those who are with the coup plotters, with the friends of the terrorists and with the enemies of the nation" - allusions to the left in opposition. The rebels, on the other hand, have been accused of seeking to take over the presidency of parliament and also take control of regional party finances.
Sebastià Sagreras, PP spokesperson, called on Vox on Wednesday "to stop this regrettable spectacle" and to make clear whether it is capable of fulfilling the agreement with the PP and guaranteeing with "all of its deputies" that there is a majority for Marga Prohens. "Let Vox clarify and stop putting on this show. We will continue to govern with our programme and comply with the investiture agreements."
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