Pere Aragonès i Garcia (; born 16 November 1982) is a Catalan lawyer and former politician who served as President of the Government of Catalonia from 2021 to 2024. He previously served between 2018 and 2021 as

Vice President A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

and Minister of Economy and Finance of Catalonia, as well as Acting President between September 2020 and May 2021. He is a member of the

Republican Left of Catalonia The Republican Left of Catalonia (, ERC; ; generically branded as ) is a pro-Catalan independence, social democratic political party in the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia, with a presence also in Valencia, the Balearic Islands and t ...

(ERC) political party. Born in 1982 in Pineda de Mar, Aragonès studied law at the

Open University of Catalonia The Open University of Catalonia (; ) is a private Open supported learning, open university based in Barcelona, Spain. The UOC offers graduate and postgraduate programs in Catalan language, Catalan, Spanish language, Spanish and English languag ...

and economics at the University of Barcelona before becoming a lawyer and an academic. He was a member of the

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from December 2006 to January 2016 when he was appointed Secretary of Economy in the Catalan government. He was a member of the municipal council in Pineda de Mar from May 2011 to April 2018 and was appointed Vice President and Minister of Economy and Finance of Catalonia in June 2018.

Early life

Aragonès was born on 16 November 1982 in Pineda de Mar,

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

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. His grandfather , a textile businessman and real estate tycoon, also served as the mayor of his hometown during the Francoist dictatorship, continuing in the post throughout the Transition as a member of Democratic Reform of Catalonia and People's Alliance up until 1987. In the 1990s, his father served as municipal councillor for Convergence and Union in Pineda. He has a degree in law from the

and a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in economic history from the University of Barcelona (UB). He has also studied public policy and economic development at the

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's Kennedy School of Government. He is currently studying for a Ph.D. in economic history from UB. Aragonès joined the Young Republican Left of Catalonia, the youth wing of the

, in 1998 and was its national spokesperson from 2003 to 2007. He joined ERC in 2000. He has been a member of ERC's executive since 2003 and is currently number three in the party. He is also a member of the

Òmnium Cultural Òmnium Cultural () is a Spanish association based in Barcelona, Catalonia. It was originally created in the 1960s to promote the Catalan language and spread Catalan culture. Over the years it has increased its involvement in broader political i ...

Career

Aragonès worked at a

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specialising in corporate and public administration law. He was a

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at the Institut Ignasi Villalonga d'Economia i Empresa and an associate professor at the University of Perpignan. In January 2016 he was appointed the

Generalitat de Catalunya The Generalitat de Catalunya (; ; ), or the Government of Catalonia, is the institutional system by which Catalonia is self-governed as an autonomous community of Spain. It is made up of the Parliament of Catalonia, the President of the Govern ...

's Secretary of Economy. At the 2003 regional election Aragonès was placed 38th on the

's list of candidates in the Province of Barcelona but the party only won 13 seats in the province, and as a result he was not elected. At the 2006 regional election he was placed 12th on the ERC's list of candidates in the Province of Barcelona but the party only won 11 seats in the province and as a result he was not elected again. In December 2006, he was appointed to the

following the resignation of Josep Huguet. Aragonès was placed 7th on ERC's list of candidates

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

in the Province of Barcelona and, although the party only won six seats in the province, he was re-elected after the second placed candidate Ernest Benach declined to take his seat in the Catalan parliament. He was re-elected at the

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

and

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regional elections. He resigned from parliament upon being appointed Secretary of Economy. Govern de Catalunya foto oficial 2018

Aragonès contested the 2011 local elections as a Republican Left of Catalonia-Junts per Pineda-Acord Municipal (ERC-JP-AM)

electoral alliance An electoral alliance (also known as a bipartisan electoral agreement, electoral pact, electoral agreement, electoral coalition or electoral bloc) is an association of political parties or individuals that exists solely to stand in elections. E ...

candidate in Pineda de Mar and was elected. He was re-elected at the 2015 local elections. He resigned from Pineda de Mar Municipal Council in April 2018. On 19 May 2018, newly elected President of Catalonia Quim Torra nominated a new government in which Aragonès was to be

and Minister of Economy and Finance. He was sworn in on 2 June 2018 at the Palau de la Generalitat de Catalunya. On 15 March 2020 Aragonès announced on

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that he had contracted

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

during the

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. On 28 September 2020, following the rule issued by the Spanish Supreme Court that barred President of Catalonia Joaquim Torra from chairing any public office, he assumed the position as acting President of the region.

Presidency

On 21 May 2021, after the 2021 Catalan elections and an agreement with Junts, he became the first President of Catalonia from Esquerra Republicana since Josep Tarradellas in the 1980s. In June 2021, he welcomed the decision by Pedro Sánchez to pardon those convicted for the 2017 independence attempt but said that he would pursue amnesty for all those involved in that year's events, which would benefit over 3,000 people. Among the many measures, a "dialogue table" between the Catalan and Spanish governments to advance in the resolution of the political conflict was announced, though it would later go on to prove little to no effective. In October 2022, the coalition government collapsed mainly due to internal skirmishes over the strategy to achieve independence between the two ruling coalition parties that had been brewing during all that year, leaving ERC with a

minority government A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in ...

with the external support of the

Socialists' Party of Catalonia The Socialists' Party of Catalonia (, PSC–PSOE) is a social democratic political party in Catalonia, Spain, resulting from the merger of three parties: the Socialist Party of Catalonia–Regrouping, led by Josep Pallach i Carolà, the Socia ...

. During the 2023 Spanish government formation, ERC and the Spanish Socialist Worker's Party reached a deal to lead the "integral transfer" of the Spanish government operated Rodalies de Catalunya commuter rail to the Catalan Government. The negotiations for the transfer would go on to extend to the Illa administration. In March 2024, he called for a

snap election A snap election is an election that is called earlier than the one that has been scheduled. Snap elections in parliamentary systems are often called to resolve a political impasse such as a hung parliament where no single political party has a ma ...

after the

failed to pass the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

's yearly budget. The pro-independence camp would go on to lose parliamentary majority for the first time since

, with Aragonès announcing his retirement from politics the day after the election.

Electoral history

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aragonès, Pere 1982 births Academics from Catalonia Lawyers from Catalonia Municipal councillors in the province of Barcelona Economy ministers of Catalonia Finance ministers of Catalonia Living people Members of the 8th Parliament of Catalonia Members of the 9th Parliament of Catalonia Members of the 10th Parliament of Catalonia Members of the 11th Parliament of Catalonia People from Maresme Presidents of the Government of Catalonia Republican Left of Catalonia politicians Torra Government University of Barcelona alumni Vice presidents of Catalonia 21st-century Catalan people