History repeats itself. The tension between the national leadership of the PP and the Community government returns after Isabel Díaz Ayuso has publicly nominated herself as a candidate to lead the party in Madrid . A decision that has not received the explicit support of Pablo Casado, which has annoyed the president, according to Europa Press. From Genoa the message is very clear: they do not want to enter this debate, since there are at least nine months to go before the changeover will take place.
If in the past the internal struggles between Esperanza Aguirre and Alberto Ruiz Gallardón were a headache for the then popular president, Mariano Rajoy, now the battle to lead the Madrid PP can also become a problem for Pablo Casado, focused on the Convention National of the training that starts on September 27 in Santiago and culminates on October 3 in the bullring of Valencia.
The alternative to Pedro Sánchez
In this context, sources from the PP leadership cited by Europa Press reproach Pilar Díaz Ayuso for putting the media focus on an internal party issue just over two weeks before the PP convention, in which the party seeks to elevate Pablo Casado as the only alternative to Pedro Sánchez. The national leadership does not want the battle to preside over the PP in Madrid to tarnish the relaunch of the PP to get back to Moncloa.
From Genoa they reproach the leader of Madrid for having opened the melon of the succession when there are still nine months left for the celebration of the regional congress, which has not yet been convened.
Reinforced after the elections
The PP of Madrid has been led since 2018 by the former president of the Senate Pio García-Escudero, who held the position after the resignation of Cristina Cifuentes, punctuated by the master’s case and the theft of creams in a supermarket. Now Díaz Ayuso has publicly postulated to occupy the position , a fact that was already taken for granted from his environment weeks ago. The overwhelming victory in the last elections to the Community and the fact that in the communities governed by the PP, the regional presidents are also the party presidents are arguments used by Díaz Ayuso. “We must return normality to the party,” said Díaz Ayuso.
Pablo Casado has avoided publicly speaking about the announcement of the president of the Community, which has annoyed Díaz Ayuso. The president of the popular affirmed this week that there are two highly qualified militants to preside over the party in Madrid in reference to the president and the mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida. The mayor has left the door open to present a candidacy , which will decide when the celebration of the congress approaches.
As proof of the tension in relations between Puerta del Sol and Genoa, the Madrid government announced a couple of days ago that Ayuso plans a tour of the United States for the last week of September, coinciding with the celebration of the Convention of the PP, although “will do everything possible” to reach the last day of the conclave.