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GENERAL ELECTION
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Irene Montero to run for open primary to run for Podemos in general election

The former minister wants to lead the alternative left in a context where the coalition of Sumar, IU, Mas Madrid and Comuns still has no candidate.

(I-D) La secretaria general de Podemos, Ione Belarra, la secretaria política de Podemos y eurodiputada, Irene Montero, durante el acto ‘Paz, casa, trabajo’ organizado por Podemos, en Espacio Larra, a 12 de septiembre de 2026, en Madrid (España). La eurodiputada de Podemos y exministra de Igualdad, Irene Montero, ha oficializado su determinación de liderar a la izquierda alternativa a través de una candidatura auspiciada por su partido a las próximas elecciones generales, con el deseo de que sea lo más amplia posible.



Ricardo Rubio / Europa Press

12 SEPTIEMBRE 2026;PARTIDO POLÍTICO

12/9/2026
Irene Montero this Saturday in Madrid. Photo: Europa Press

Irene Montero, MEP for Podemos and former Minister for Equality, has decided to be a candidate for the general election and is therefore committed to holding a primary in which anyone, including those outside the party, can participate.

Montero has stressed that he wants torun for office , but that he does not want to "be in any way", so that not only the candidacy of Podemos, but also the team that will accompany him, can be chosen and anyone, militant or not of the party, can participate.

Saddled by the Secretary General of Podemos, Ione Belarra, and the 'purple' leaders Serigne Mbaye and Mar Cambrollé, theformer minister on Saturday confirmed his willingness to be the benchmark of Podemos and the alternative left  after the party ran for re-election in April last year.

Purple party sources have indicated that they want to form a left-wing and as broad a project as possible, without defining possible alliances with civil society and parties.

Before the summer, the Podemos leadership defended the possibility of an electoral tandem with the ERC spokesman in Congress, Gabriel Rufián, but that possible alliance did not materialize and the party made it clear that there will be no unification with state forces.

Montero now sees his intention to lead the alternative left again, as the parties that make up the minority government partner framework (Sumar, IU, Comuns and Mas Madrid) have no candidate to lead the coalition.

Party reactions

Sumar has assured Saturday that it has been "building a common space for left-wing parties for months," but that process will go "step by step."

For his part, the federal coordinator of the United Left, Antonio Maillo, sees "nothing new" in the movement of the leader of Podemos and has made it clear that his organization "puts no limits on the search for a broad historical bloc on the left."

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