Three disparate snapshots to understand the route of José Luis Martínez-Almeida (and its dangers) towards the elections of 28-M.

Spontaneity. It's almost noon in the San Isidro prairie. After the speeches of presentation of the program of parties, several couples of chulapos burst onto the stage that are delivered to the rhythm of the chotis. They, as tradition dictates, turning with their feet nailed to the platform. The music stops and one of the chulapos goes down in search of Almeida. There are those who cover their eyes and cross their fingers so that the anecdote is not meme meat. "He's like that, it comes naturally to him. Better this than with a ball ...", they say, somewhat more relaxed, while the mayor immerses himself in the traditional Madrid dance, flexing his left leg.

Football. It's weekend in Seville, countdown to the Copa del Rey final. A follower of Osasuna asks for a photo and ends up in the middle of a large hall of red fans, under a downpour of chants from the rival fans of Real Madrid. He barely cracks a smile because, as he is repeatedly warned by his people, football is carried by the devil: "These are situations that must be avoided, and more when it is not from either team." After that inopportune scene, they followed (uncomfortable) posed with scarves and flags of Real Madrid.

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The Parpusa.

Almeida and the risk of putting football in the electoral campaign

  • Writing: JAIME RODRÍGUEZ

Almeida and the risk of putting football in the electoral campaign

The campaign. It is May 2 and, minutes before the Felix Bolaños case explodes in the Puerta del Sol, Almeida calls the Minister of the Presidency a "squatter", who wanders the corridors of the Royal Post Office in search of his seat next to Margarita Robles and the Government Delegate, Francisco Martín. "It is not good to sneak in where you are not invited," he adds, embracing that anti-Sanchista line that the Popular Party of Madrid has chosen as a springboard for the electoral campaign. The fierce look towards Moncloa, a popular market niche to grow in Madrid, springs more naturally from the lips of Isabel Díaz Ayuso than from those of the mayor. Yesterday, during an act where he presented a plan for beautification of facades and rehabilitation, he appealed to the film The Cheaters by Tony Leblanc to refer to Sánchez. Hours earlier, in an interview on Antena 3, he had repeated the scene. His usual peasant tone squeaks with that unbridled criticism.

In these last days of crossing to 28-M, every gesture is examined under a microscope. That is why it is so crucial to offer coherent proposals for the future as to avoid screwing up. And there the football colors appear with double edge. Especially when who enters the scene is not the own team, as happens to Almeida, red-and-white at heart. "The subject of football is always delicate," insist those who live with him. But, much more, when the polls do not illuminate a panorama like the one that seems to await Ayuso in the Community. From Sol they observe with attention each daily grimace of the mayor, despite the fact that those convulsive days of 2022, with the fall of Casado and the coronation of Feijóo, seem already archived. Although the brushstrokes drawn from the Royal Post Office to the municipal list invite you to think that not at all.

Vox's yearnings

The popular strategy in the capital is to take heart for what has been achieved during the legislature. Also, for following the slipstream of Ayuso, with that double ballot as a recipe for success. However, there are those who think that it may not be enough. Not to achieve a majority large enough to draw a government without ties. The electoral promises are constant, but there are those who miss some more sonorous bet.

Although in the plans of the councilor is not shaking hands with Ortega Smith, from Vox they have been insisting on that idea for weeks. So does Villacís, convinced that 5% of votes is possible, and that Almeida will have to give him a complicit look again. In addition, both Rita Maestre and Reyes Maroto, do not lose hope of being able to champion an electoral overturn.

"These days there is little to gain and much to lose," warn those who know that political spiral that accompanies the final sprint. And in those walks Almeida, whose route has nothing to do with that of 2019, when he had to risk to make himself known. Now try to complete your journey without stepping on the accelerator. Think that there is no better way to get around the risks. Although, as you well know in your team, there is always a chotis, a Bolaños or a football match that threatens on the horizon: "He is like that".

  • Articles Carlos Guisasola
  • Jose Luis Martinez-Almeida
  • Isabel Diaz Ayuso

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