The remnants of the old Catalan centre-right party Convergència that remain in the PDeCAT and have not made the leap to Junts, the political formation led by Carles Puigdemont and which brings together many of the best known members - with the notable exception of Artur Mas - in this part of the pro-independence space, have made one more move in the battle they are maintaining, and have decided to call primaries to elect a candidate for the presidency of Catalonia in the elections of 14th February. Former Catalan minister Àngels Chacón has already put up her hand and announced that she will run for office, thus confirming the rumours circulating for some time that place her at the top of an electoral list.
She faces a difficult path, as so far the PDeCAT does not appear as a viable option to win seats in any of the surveys that have been conducted, although it is true that the official split is too recent. Chacón had television minutes during the recent government reshuffle carried out by president Quim Torra, as her portfolio passed into the hands of Ramon Tremosa in what some sought to portray as a purge in the PDeCAT. This is only a half-truth, as her management was questioned by different economic actors, although she enjoyed a good relationship with the Fomento employers association and the trade unions. In any case, if Chacón fell from the economy ministry because she belonged to the PDeCAT, the new Catalan interior minister - taking over from Miquel Buch - is Miquel Samper, and he was also a member of the PDeCAT when appointed, although he quickly resigned.
The PDeCAT's strategy is to identify voters in the broad post-convergent space who prioritize the ideological battle, are located in the centre-right and who feel a little queasy with messages of confrontation against the state. The PDeCAT believes that with a good campaign that allows it to highlight aspects such as, for example, lowering of taxes and even the abolition of some current payments, or the defence of religious schools, could find an electoral gap. The party's goal of five seats - three for Barcelona, one for Lleida and one for Tarragona - seems more than difficult, especially because, as elections approach, what usually happens is a focus on major parties by voters who have not made up their minds.
There are still more than a hundred days until the Catalan elections and we can but watch to see if the PDeCAT keeps up its challenge, because there will be no shortage of calls for unity.