Junts per Sabadell has officially announced that former ERC candidate Gabriel Fernàndez will lead a broad coalition for the 2027 municipal elections in Sabadell. Members approved the proposal with 73.5% of votes at an assembly held on Friday, 17 May 2026.
The party will contest the elections in coalition with Gent de Sabadell, MesCAT, and Identitat Sabadellenca. This decision follows Fernàndez's departure from ERC last September due to disagreements with the party's leadership.
Francesc Xavier Baró, local president of Junts per Sabadell, emphasised the focus on a city-wide project over party politics. "This is not about names, it is about a project. Now is not the time for party politics, it is time for city and country politics," Baró told attendees. The assembly, which included Junts general secretary Jordi Turull, backed the broad candidacy to "stand up to the PSC" in next year's municipal vote.
Internal Strife and New Alliances
This development comes after internal issues within Junts per Sabadell. In March, the local executive asked its two councillors, Lluís Matas and Katia Botta, to resign their positions, citing "a lack of political coordination and debate space." The councillors reportedly threatened legal action against Turull and Baró for damages. The party temporarily suspended Matas and Botta in April after they refused to voluntarily give up their seats, according to Diari de Sabadell.
Junts per Sabadell stated that militants at the assembly supported Turull in the conflict with the two councillors, a matter that "barely took a few minutes" of discussion.
Fernàndez, who was ERC's mayoral candidate in Sabadell in 2023, left the republican party last September and refused to return his seat, making him a non-attached councillor. In November, Fernàndez launched the Gent de Sabadell platform with Carme Garcia, a former deputy and councillor for Iniciativa per Catalunya Verds (ICV).
Broader Party Strategy
Fernàndez's political career began as director of Ciutadans pel Canvi, a platform supporting the PSC. He served as ERC spokesperson in Sabadell until his departure last year.
This move in Sabadell is part of a wider strategy by Junts. The party is exploring a similar coalition in Sant Cugat with Avenç Nacionalista for the 2027 elections. Junts leader Carles Puigdemont's party aims to replicate a previous operation in Manresa, where Sergi Perramon, a founder of a platform including former Front Nacional de Catalunya (FNC) representatives, led a similar initiative.
