Esquerry President Oriol Junqueras will step down before the party’s November congress

Former Catalan Vice President Oriol Junqueras he stepped down, at least temporarily, as president of the pro-independence Esquerra Republicana party.

Already Junqueras announced his intentions in Mayafter the party lost thousands of votes in the Catalan elections and a year earlier in local and Spanish elections.

Secretary General Marta Rovira will serve as acting president until then November 30. On that day, the party will hold a congress where the future of the group will be decided, and Rovira will step down from his position.

Junqueras, who was imprisoned for his role in the 2017 independence referendum and later pardoned by the Spanish government, will now speak and meet grassroots members parties to regain trust.

The leadership is held by the Catalan independence party Esquerra crisis after defeat in the Catalan elections on May 12 and losing 13 places and the presidency.

Catalan President Pere Aragonès of Esquerra announced the day after the election that he would do so descend as a member of parliament and “facilitate the party’s transition” to new leadership.

In the same line Marta RoviraSecretary General Esquerra, announced her decision to resign.

Although both Aragonès and Rovira are pushing for new leadership in the party, long-time party member Junqueras advocates the opposite: host the party again.

However, Junqueras denied that anyone from the party put pressure on him. “I felt I was accompanied,” he said in May, happy that there were “many and diverse” positions willing to help “strengthen” the party.