Manuel Valls, the former French prime minister and a vocal opponent of Catalan independence, on Tuesday night announced his candidacy for mayor of Barcelona, setting off a fierce contest for control of the city deemed central to secessionist ambitions.
The Barcelona-born politician, who has dual nationality through his Catalan father, said he would run as an independent though noted the backing of the conservative party Ciudadanos, the leading pro-union force in the autonomous community. Others would join them, he hoped.
“I want to be the mayor of a new Barcelona, for everyone,” Mr Valls told a packed press conference in the city, which he said should be “the antidote to populism”.
Barcelona was today suffering “serious problems” including crime, poor management of tourism, and effects of the independence process. Citing the flight of businesses and social tensions, Mr Valls said the city “deserved to be governed in its own interests”, adding “Barcelona has to go back to being Barcelona”.
He said he would next week resign his duties in France, where he represents a constituency in Essone, describing his move to Barcelona as "an act of faith" in a city that had always held a treasured place in his family life.
Teased by Mr Valls for months, the announcement has galvanised pro-independence parties, who regard Barcelona’s City Hall as a key battleground in the fight for a Catalan Republic. The current mayor, Ada Colau of the left-wing Barcelona en Comú, supports Catalan self-determination but has been critical of unilateral secessionist moves.
Amid a flurry of negotiations over potential candidates and coalitions, the left wing, pro-independence Esquerra Republicana (ERC) has now pinned its hopes on Ernest Maragall, the veteran political heavyweight who is currently the Catalan councillor for exterior relations.
Mr Maragall’s selection came at the expense of Alfred Bosch, the ERC council leader who at the weekend announced he was stepping aside in favour of the “better candidate”.
The ERC politician has already gone on the offensive against Mr Valls, on Monday branding him the "candidate of the rich, but not only those of Barcelona" and suggesting his campaign is being directed from "outside" the city.
Mr Maragall has also raised the possibility of joining forces with Ms Colau in order to see off the challenge from Mr Valls.
Despite increasing local criticism over spiralling living costs, tourism management and security, Ms Colau remains popular, with recent polls indicating a repeat of her 2015 victory – albeit a narrow one.
But the star power of Mr Valls, combined with rising local support for Ciudadanos, could prove a formidable challenge.
Led in Catalonia by Ines Arrimadas, Ciudadanos capitalised on anger among opponents of independence to become the largest single party in the Catalan parliament in last December’s snap elections, though the separatist coalition retained overall control.
PdeCat, the party of pro-independence leader Carles Puigdemont, would like to maintain that alliance in the May 26 vote. But disagreements between secessionist parties on the path towards a Republic, as well as divergent ideologies on other issues, could prevent such a pact.