Catalan Alliance () is a

far right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and Nativism (politics), nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on ...

political party in

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

. It is a Catalan pro-independence, and

ultranationalist Ultranationalism, or extreme nationalism, is an extremist form of nationalism in which a country asserts or maintains hegemony, supremacy, or other forms of control over other nations (usually through violent coercion) to pursue its specific ...

party, that also opposes

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...

and is against the use of the

Spanish language Spanish () or Castilian () is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family that evolved from the Vulgar Latin spoken on the Iberian Peninsula of Europe. Today, it is a world language, gl ...

in Catalonia. It is currently the governing party of the municipality of

Ripoll Ripoll () is the capital of the ''comarca'' of Ripollès, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. It is located on confluence of the Ter river and its tributary Freser, next to the Pyrenees near the border of France. The population was 11 ...

. At the

2024 Catalan regional election A regional election was held in Catalonia on Sunday, 12 May 2024, to elect the 15th Parliament of Catalonia, Parliament of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community. All 135 seats in the Parliament were up for election. The coali ...

, the party entered the

Parliament of Catalonia The Parliament of Catalonia (, ; ; ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Catalonia. The Parliament is currently made up of 135 members, known as Deputy (legislator), deput ...

for the first time, with two seats.

History

The party was founded in 2020 by

Councilor

Sílvia Orriols Sílvia Orriols Serra (; born 9 October 1984) is a Catalan politician, president of the far-right political party Catalan Alliance. Orriols was elected mayor of Ripoll in June 2023 and elected deputy to the Parliament of Catalonia a year l ...

, who left the

National Front of Catalonia The National Front of Catalonia ( Catalan: ''Front Nacional de Catalunya'', FNC) was a Catalan nationalist party which was active between 1940 and 1990. The FNC was created in 1940 by former members of the Estat Català and the Catalan Nationali ...

(FNC) due to her opposition to moderating the party's stance on immigration. All FNC members in Ripoll joined Orriols in forming the Catalan Alliance. In May 2023, the party won the municipal elections in Ripoll, receiving the most votes in the town and obtaining six councilors. On 12 June, the other political forces in the municipality of Ripoll tried to make a pact to prevent Catalan Alliance from governing the municipality, but Together for Catalonia (Junts) ultimately did not participate in the agreement and Orriols was invested as mayor on 17 June 2023. In the other two municipalities where the party ran, they obtained two more councilors, one in

Manlleu Manlleu () is municipality in the comarca of Osona, in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia, northern Spain. Manlleu is located in a large plain, La Plana de Vic, at around 460 metres above sea level on average. The highest point is Puig Agut ch ...

and another in

Ribera d'Ondara Ribera d'Ondara () is a municipality in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autono ...

. In the latter municipality, the party's representative, Albert Puig, became mayor in 2024 following a no-confidence motion against the minority government of Francesc Sabanés of the

Socialists' Party of Catalonia The Socialists' Party of Catalonia (, PSC–PSOE) is a social democratic political party in Catalonia, Spain, resulting from the merger of three parties: the Socialist Party of Catalonia–Regrouping, led by Josep Pallach i Carolà, the Socia ...

(PSC). Elisabet Jové of the

Republican Left of Catalonia The Republican Left of Catalonia (, ERC; ; generically branded as ) is a pro-Catalan independence, social democratic political party in the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia, with a presence also in Valencia, the Balearic Islands and t ...

(ERC) became the new mayor, but she stepped down shortly after assuming the role due to maternity leave, handing the mayoralty to Puig. Puig will hold the position for four months, until Jové returns from maternity leave, and governs with the support of councilors elected under the ERC banner. After the agreement between Catalan Alliance and the ERC was announced, ERC leadership severed all ties with the Ribera d'Ondara branch of the party. On 25 March 2024, Orriols confirmed that Catalan Alliance would be presenting a list for the

, with Orriols as the lead candidate. Ahead of the elections, PSC, ERC, Junts,

Comuns Sumar Comuns Sumar () is a Catalan-based electoral alliance formed by Catalunya en Comú, Barcelona in Common and Movimiento Sumar ahead of the 2024 Catalan regional election A regional election was held in Catalonia on Sunday, 12 May 2024, to elec ...

, and

Popular Unity Candidacy The Popular Unity Candidacy (, CUP) is a left-wing to far-left pro-Catalan independence political party active primarily in Catalonia, where it has political representation, but also in other autonomous communities in Spain it considers to be part ...

(CUP) announced that they would not enter into any coalition agreement with Catalan Alliance or Vox. The party would ultimately win two seats in the election, entering the Parliament of Catalonia for the first time as the smallest party. The party would win Ripoll and the surrounding municipalities of

Les Llosses Les Llosses () is a village in the province of Girona and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain. The municipality covers an area of and the population in 2014 was 211. It includes an exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely sur ...

Campdevànol Campdevànol () is a village in the province of Girona and autonomous community of Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Ca ...

, and

Gombrèn Gombrèn () is a village in the province of Girona and autonomous community of Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catal ...

, all of which border Ripoll. In

, Catalan Alliance would finish second behind Junts.

Ideology

Catalan Alliance is generally considered to be

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

on the

political spectrum A political spectrum is a system to characterize and classify different Politics, political positions in relation to one another. These positions sit upon one or more Geometry, geometric Coordinate axis, axes that represent independent political ...

. The party stands for a

security policy Security policy is a definition of what it means to ''be secure'' for a system, organization or other entity. For an organization, it addresses the constraints on behavior of its members as well as constraints imposed on adversaries by mechanisms ...

zero-tolerance A zero-tolerance policy is one which imposes a punishment for every infraction of a stated rule.zero tolerance, n.' (under ''zero, n.''). The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd Ed. 1989. Retrieved 10 November 2009. Italy, Japan, Singapore China, I ...

on crime, linking it to

illegal immigration Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of that country's immigration laws, or the continuous residence in a country without the legal right to do so. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upward, wi ...

. The party supports increased police presence. It stands for deporting all irregular migrants and applying stricter requirements to immigrate legally to Catalonia as well as promoting

anti-Muslim rhetoric Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...

, with party leader Sílvia Orriols stating that Muslims "do not integrate in our country but rather they attack our rights and freedoms". Orriols claims that Islam is incompatible with

western values Western values refer to the set of social, political, and philosophical principles that have developed in the Western world, particularly in Europe and North America, and have influenced global culture, governance, and ethics. These values, whil ...

and has called for the closure of mosques and bans on the

burqa A burqa or burka (; ) is an enveloping outer garment worn by some Muslim women which fully covers the body and the face. Also known as a chadaree (; ) or chaadar (Dari: چادر) in Afghanistan, or a ''paranja'' (; ; ) in Central Asia, the Ara ...

in public. The party has been described as

anti-immigration Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, is a political position that seeks to restrict immigration. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory in ...

. On

international affairs International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

, Catalan Alliance is

soft Eurosceptic Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies and seek reform ...

, saying that being part of the EU has good as well as bad consequences. It believes that Catalonia should remain in the EU but "Catalans should have interests, not friendships in Europe", so that the aim should be to negotiate agreements and policies according to Catalan interests, instead of accepting and having to adapt to anything coming from Brussels. Diplomatically, the party "supports the free world", showing support for Israel. It also aims to create a military for Catalonia in case of becoming an independent State. On

cultural issues Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, attitudes, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...

, the party, overwhelmingly

Catalan nationalist Catalan nationalism promotes the idea that the Catalan people form a distinct nation and national identity. A related term is Catalanism (, ), which is more related to regionalism and tends to have a wider meaning, most people who define themsel ...

, has criticized

bilingualism Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...

in Catalonia, with prominent member Jordi Aragonès stating that newcomers usually learn

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

instead of

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #13 ...

, and that knowing Catalan language should be a condition to live in Catalonia. Furthermore, the party states Catalan should be the only official language in Catalonia and that Spanish should be an optional subject at schools. Catalan Alliance is

liberal-conservative Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...

in outlook, stating that defending western values and

Catalan traditions Traditions of Catalonia are sets of traditions, values, customs, and festivities that belongs within the culture of Catalan people. While most are of ancient origin, certain traditions are of relatively recent introduction. There are also some t ...

is necessary to accomplish a free, tolerant and respectful society. On that line, Catalan Alliance is moderate on

social issues A social issue is a problem that affects many people within a society. It is a group of common problems in present-day society that many people strive to solve. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's control. Soc ...

such as

LGBTQ rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Nota ...

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

, and has been described as homonationalist. On issues like abortion, euthanasia, drug legalisation or AI the party has no official position. The party takes a

neoliberal Neoliberalism is a political and economic ideology that advocates for free-market capitalism, which became dominant in policy-making from the late 20th century onward. The term has multiple, competing definitions, and is most often used pej ...

stance on

economic issues A social issue is a problem that affects many people within a society. It is a group of common problems in present-day society that many people strive to solve. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's control. Soc ...

. It calls for cuts on both

public spending Government spending or expenditure includes all government consumption, investment, and transfer payments. In national income accounting, the acquisition by governments of goods and services for current use, to directly satisfy the individual o ...

and

taxation A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal person, legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to Pigouvian tax, regulate and reduce nega ...

, including the abolition of the

wealth Wealth is the abundance of valuable financial assets or physical possessions which can be converted into a form that can be used for transactions. This includes the core meaning as held in the originating Old English word , which is from an ...

and the

inheritance tax International tax law distinguishes between an estate tax and an inheritance tax. An inheritance tax is a tax paid by a person who inherits money or property of a person who has died, whereas an estate tax is a levy on the estate (money and pro ...

. The party supports

rental Renting, also known as hiring or letting, is an agreement where a payment is made for the use of a good, service or property owned by another over a fixed period of time. To maintain such an agreement, a rental agreement (or lease) is sign ...

deregulation Deregulation is the process of removing or reducing state regulations, typically in the economic sphere. It is the repeal of governmental regulation of the economy. It became common in advanced industrial economies in the 1970s and 1980s, as a ...

. In contrast to all those economically liberal standings, Catalan Alliance also advocates for protectionism of local companies.

Electoral performance

Parliament of Catalonia The Parliament of Catalonia (, ; ; ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Catalonia. The Parliament is currently made up of 135 members, known as Deputy (legislator), deput ...

Municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

References

{{reflist 2020 establishments in Catalonia Political parties established in 2020 Anti-Islam political parties in Europe Anti-Islam sentiment in Spain Catalan nationalist parties Counter-jihad Far-right politics in Catalonia Far-right political parties in Spain

History

Ideology

Electoral performance

Parliament of Catalonia The Parliament of Catalonia (, ; ; ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Catalonia. The Parliament is currently made up of 135 members, known as Deputy (legislator), deput ...

Municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

See also

References