He had to choose and he chose. The socialist leader José Vélez has backed down, resigns from being a regional senator and decides to stay in the Assembly as a deputy and spokesperson for the Socialist Parliamentary Group. The regional Executive, meeting at this time, will propose to the Regional Committee María Dolores Flores García, councilor of the PSOE of Cartagena.
Vélez had the intention of combining his seat in the Senate with that of the Assembly, but the reform of the Regional Electoral Law, promoted by Ciudadanos in the summer of 2015, prohibited duplicity with the idea that mayors could not, at the same time, time, be deputies. They could not imagine that eight years later, this regulatory change was going to cross the path of the socialist leader. The key to the measure was to return parliamentary activity to the Assembly and since then it has been incompatible to be in the regional Chamber and at the same time in Congress, to be a senator or MEP.
The socialist leader has the support of Ferraz to go to the upper house as a regional senator, as have the barons of Madrid, Juan Lobato, of Andalusia, Juan Espadas, of La Rioja, Concha Andreu, of the Valencian Community, Ximo Puig, from Extremadura, Guillermo Fernández Vara, and from Aragón, Javier Lambán, to, in this way, reinforce territorial leadership. However, they did not take into account that article 5.3-d of the Regional Electoral Law expressly prohibits it. This exception only exists in the Region of Murcia, the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands.
At first, the Murcian socialists consulted the legal services because they knew that the former secretary general and former secretary of State for Infrastructure Pedro Saura was a deputy and senator at the same time but that was in 2007-2008, before the reform of the Regional Electoral Law of 2015.
They also doubted because the Senate Regulations do not contemplate incompatibilities, but sources from the Upper House explained to LA VERDAD that regional regulations prevail. This is stated in article 165.4 of the Organic Law of the Electoral Regime (Loreg) by establishing that the appointment of regional senators corresponds to the Assembly, “in accordance with what its Statutes establish.”
Article 23.2 of the Statute of Autonomy of the Region of Murcia establishes that the regional Parliament is responsible for assigning senators “in accordance with what is established by a law of the Assembly.” And that is when the Regional Electoral Law modified in 2015 comes into play, which prohibits duplications.
Unrest in a part of the PSOE
Vélez’s candidacy to combine the position of regional senator and that of deputy speaker in the Assembly did not sit well with a part of the PSRM-PSOE that did not see favorably that the socialist leader wanted to monopolize responsibilities, especially after the bad times. electoral results of May 28, when the Socialist Party fell back and went from 17 to 13 seats in the regional Parliament.
However, those who support Vélez defend that it would be good for the Region if the former Government delegate were in Madrid, like the rest of the territorial leaders of the PSOE, to act as the sole interlocutor before the central Administration. Also to achieve more visibility after Vox and PP limited their interventions to 4 minutes in the plenary sessions of control of López Miras in the Assembly.
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