'Outraged' mayors take office in Spain's Madrid, Barcelona
Two activists from the Indignados (outraged) anti-austerity movement that grew in the face of the economic crisis in Spain have taken office as mayors of the capital, Madrid, and Barcelona.
Former judge Manuela Carmena managed to end 24 years of conservative Popular Party rule in the Spanish capital, taking oath as mayor of the city on Saturday.
“I promise to loyally respect the duties involved in being mayor of Madrid,” Carmena said during her inauguration.
Carmena’s success comes after her leftist platform, Ahora Madrid, entered into an alliance with the main opposition Socialists, after defeating the ruling Popular Party in local and regional elections in May.
“We are at the service of the citizens of Madrid. We want to govern by listening. We want them to call us by our first names,” Carmena said.
Many of Carmena’s supporters are from the Indignados anti-austerity protest movement, which occupied Spanish squares four years ago and called for an end to cuts to healthcare and education, and to corruption.
Eradicating corruption, developing public transport, boosting subsidies for poor families and cutting the mayor’s salary by over half to 45,000 euros ($51,000), are on top of Carmena’s agenda as the new mayor.
People from all walks of life joined the protest movement that brought Carmena to power, as they all sought change in a country ruled by the Popular Party since 2011.
Carmena won 29 votes of 59 representatives in the city council on Saturday to become the leader of the city of three million.
In Barcelona, Ada Colau, 41, became the first female mayor.
Colau, who is a member of the anti-eviction movement, was elected in the May vote in Barcelona. She secured her position after gaining the support of the ERC, a left-wing independent party, and the Socialists.
MR/HSN/HMV
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