Parliament of Catalonia

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's Socialists are hoping to show Catalonia has turned away from its independence fixation by winning Sunday's regional vote and defeating separatist leader Carles Puigdemont.

When the polls open at 9:00 a.m. (07:00 GMT), the wealthy northeastern region of some eight million people will vote for 135 deputies to the Catalan parliament.

Puigdemont is on a wanted warrant in Spain for holding a referendum on Catalonia's independence two years ago.
The protests against that referendum came not only from Madrid but also from Brussels.

The demonstration was organized on the occasion of the National Day of Catalonia.

From the LSV, an opposition Serbian party, Beta agency was able to confirm that their delegation led by Secretary-General Bojan Kostres was in Barcelona.

The President of the Catalan Parliament, Roger Torrent, has proposed Jordi Sanchez as a candidate for prime minister after Carles Puigdemont withdrew his candidacy.

53-year-old Jordi Sanchez has little chance of becoming Catalan prime minister because of conflicts in the separatist camp and because he is in jail.

Carles Puigdemont is to request judicial permission to attend his inauguration as Catalan president after Spain's top court barred him from being sworn in from Belgium in an intensifying showdown over his bid to return to power, The Telegraph writes.

Today, the constituent meeting of the new Catalan Parliament will be held in Barcelona. In the early elections on 21 December, the nationalists received the most votes and again wanted to choose Carles Puigdemont as Prime Minister of the province.

The Spanish Constitutional Court annuls the declaration of the Catalan parliament of 27 October on unilateral declaration of independence, Reuters reported.

Hours after Catalonia declared independence as a result of a vote in the regional parliament, ending 70 votes in favor and 10 against, the Spanish government removed the Catalan prime minister and dismissed the parliament.