Plataforma per Catalunya (PxC; en, Platform for Catalonia) was a far-right political party rooted in

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the nort ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, which centred its political agenda around controlling immigration and was opposed to Catalan independence. It was strongly anti-Islamic, and was widely considered a racist,

xenophobic Xenophobia () is the fear or dislike of anything which is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression of perceived conflict between an in-group and out-group and may manifest in suspicion by the one of the other's activities, a ...

far-right political force. Its leader was Josep Anglada, town councillor in

Vic Vic (; es, Vic or Pancracio Celdrán (2004). Diccionario de topónimos españoles y sus gentilicios (5ª edición). Madrid: Espasa Calpe. p. 843. ISBN 978-84-670-3054-9. «Vic o Vich (viquense, vigitano, vigatán, ausense, ausetano, ausonense): ...

. PxC had 8 local representatives, often in cities with tensions between locals and immigrants. They have not had any representatives at provincial, regional or national level. In 2014, the faction of PxC supporting Catalan independence splintered to form a new far-right pro-independence party " Som Catalans" (We are Catalans). In February 2019, PxC merged with the

Spanish nationalist The creation of the tradition of the political community of Spaniards as common destiny over other communities has been argued to trace back to the Cortes of Cádiz. Revisiting the history of Spain, after 1812 Spanish liberalism tended to take fo ...

party VOX.

Ideology

In 2011 the PxC were investigated after ordering a "

Night of the Long Knives The Night of the Long Knives (German: ), or the Röhm purge (German: ''Röhm-Putsch''), also called Operation Hummingbird (German: ''Unternehmen Kolibri''), was a purge that took place in Nazi Germany from 30 June to 2 July 1934. Chancellor Ad ...

" against Muslim clerics in Catalonia. The PxC councillor in

Salt, Girona Salt () is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of the Gironès in Catalonia, Spain. It is situated on the right bank of the Ter next to Girona, with which it was merged from 1974 to 1984. The A-7 ''autopista'' and N-141 road pass through the munic ...

, voted against criminalising homophobia in the city in 2013. The PxC took a stance against the enquiry for the political future of

of 2014, also known as 9-N, which the party considered an illegal attempt of secession of the autonomous community with respect to the rest of Spain.

International relations

At their 2008 Congress, the PxC invited the

Vlaams Belang , ideology = , predecessor = Vlaams Blok , position = , europarl = Identity and Democracy , european = Identity and Democracy Party , youth_wing = Vlaams Belang Jongeren , colours = ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

and the Lega Nord of Italy to attend. In 2012, a senior PxC member congratulated the Golden Dawn of

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

on their general election results.

History

Anglada started the party on 15 January 2001 as the ''Plataforma Vigatana'' (Platform for Vic). The PxC entered their first municipal elections in 2003, winning one seat in five respective cities.

Cervera Cervera () is the capital of the ''comarca'' of Segarra, in the province of Lleida, Autonomous Community of Catalonia, Spain. The title Comte de Cervera is a courtesy title, formerly part of the Crown of Aragon, that has been revived for Leonor ...

Lleida province The Province of Lleida (; Aranese Occitan: Lhèida ; es, Lérida ) is one of the four provinces of Catalonia. It lies in north-eastern Spain, in the western part of the autonomous community of Catalonia, and is bordered by the Provinces of ...

gave the largest percentage to the party, at 9.2%. In the

2010 Catalan parliamentary election The 2010 Catalan regional election was held on Sunday, 28 November 2010, to elect the 9th Parliament of the autonomous community of Catalonia. All 135 seats in the Parliament were up for election. This was the first election held in Catalonia afte ...

they received 2.4% of votes, falling 15,000 votes short of entering Parliament. In the 2011 local elections, PxC got 65,905 votes, and grew from 17 to 67 councillors. Two were elected in Hospitalet de Llobregat, Catalonia's second-largest city. Three were elected in

Santa Coloma de Gramenet Santa Coloma de Gramenet () informally simply known as Santa Coloma (in Spanish: Santa Coloma de Gramanet, historically also known as ''Gramenet de Besòs'') is a municipality in Catalonia, Spain. It is situated on the south-east side of the L ...

, which along with the two in Hospitalet constitute the PxC's first representation in Greater Barcelona.

Mataró Mataró () is the capital and largest town of the ''comarca'' of the Maresme, in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia Autonomous Community, Spain. It is located on the Costa del Maresme, to the south of Costa Brava, between Cabrera de Mar and ...

, in Barcelona province, had the highest percentage voting for the party (10.49%, 3 seats). In Vic, the PxC grew from four to five councillors, making them the city's second-largest party after

Convergence and Union Convergence and Union ( ca, Convergència i Unió, CiU; ) was a Catalan nationalist electoral alliance in Catalonia, Spain. It was a federation of two constituent parties, the larger Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC) and its smaller coun ...

. In 2014, the members of the party supportive of the

Catalan independence movement The Catalan independence movement ( ca, independentisme català; Spanish: ''independentismo catalán'') is a social and political movement (with roots in Catalan nationalism) which seeks the independence of Catalonia from Spain. The beginnings ...

left to found their own political party: Som Catalans ("We are Catalans"). On 16 February 2019, the PxC was absorbed into Vox.

Attempts at national expansion

Parties affiliated with the PxC were set up in other regions of Spain, however they have not obtained any electoral success. The Platform for Madrid ( es, Plataforma por Madrid, PxM) cut off its links to Anglada's party in March 2006. In 2012, Anglada announced the launch of the ''Plataforma por la Libertad'' (PxL, en, Platform for Freedom), an expansion of the party into the rest of Spain. Anglada and the PxL have protested against the construction of mosques in Spain. Plataforma por la Libertad was refounded in 2013 as the Party for Freedom.

Electoral performance

Parliament of Catalonia The Parliament of Catalonia ( ca, Parlament de Catalunya, ; es, Parlamento de Cataluña; oc, Parlament de Catalonha) is the unicameral legislature of the autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain. The Parliament is currently made up of 135 mem ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control Far-right political parties in Spain Political parties in Catalonia Right-wing populism in Spain Anti-Islam political parties in Europe 2002 establishments in Spain Anti-Islam sentiment in Spain Spanish nationalism Political parties established in 2002 Political parties disestablished in 2019 Far-right politics in Catalonia