The competition between Spain's right-wing parties has spread even to bringing appeals to the Constitutional Court. Everyone was waiting for the appeal that Pablo Casado (PP) had announced against Carles Puigdemont, Toni Comín and Clara Ponsatí standing as candidates in May's European election, but that still hasn't come. Instead, Ciudadanos, which hadn't announced any plans to do so, has beaten them to it. This Wednesday afternoon, hours before the midnight deadline, Albert Rivera's party has registered its filing with the court.
This Monday, a Madrid court overturned the Central Electoral Commission's ban, arguing in favour of the candidates' political rights. The anti-independence party believe it to be "inadmissible for a gentleman who has fled from justice and who works against Spain to have privileges and to represent our country". Similarly, they say it's "a disgrace that the Spanish people should have to pay Puigdemont a salary with public money after he carried out a coup d'état".
In their appeal, the party asks the court to "annul or render invalid the contested sentence for violating the fundamental rights invoked (to equality and effective legal protection) and to declare as a result the validity of the Central Electoral Commission's ruling".
After Ciudadanos' appeal, sources close to Pablo Casado joked that the idea "rang a bell" for them. They say they are going slower because they won't present a single appeal, but three, one for each of the candidates in question.
The deadline to present appeals is this Wednesday at midnight. The Constitutional Court will then hold an emergency meeting this Thursday to resolve on the matter, hours before campaigning starts for the election.