Esquerra dedicates its efforts mainly to the elections to the Parliament of Catalonia on May 12, but does not leave aside the European elections, which are held on June 9. For the latter, Oriol Junqueras' team has turned to a media signing: TV3 meteorologist and physicist Tomàs Molina. The presenter will also accompany the Republican Diana Riba, who will appear as number one for the European Parliament elections.
ERC will once again compete alongside EH Bildu and the BNG, as it did in May 2019. The second position in the candidacy is for the Abertzale Pernando Barrena, and the third is reserved for the Galician nationalist formation. For this reason, Molina, despite being listed as Esquerra's number two, will occupy fourth place on the list.
The left-wing sovereigntist coalition, called Ahora Repúblicas, won three seats with more than 1,200,000 votes five years ago, so it will have to improve the results for the meteorologist to get a seat in the European Parliament. To try, this year they have the help of Ara Més, the federation that participated with Sumar in the last general elections, and which has been added to the alliance.
At 60 years old, Molina is perhaps the best-known meteorologist in Catalonia. Born in Badalona, with a degree in Physics from the University of Barcelona and a doctorate in Communication, he has developed a long career of more than 35 years in Catalan television. He has presented several programs and is a regular on weather information in TV3's news programs. He has been head of the network's meteorological services since 1987.
He has chaired the International Association of Meteorological Professionals (IAMB) and also held the chair of the Climate Broadcasters Network – Europe of the European Commission on Climate Change Communication. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Meteorological Service of Catalonia (SMC)
With his incorporation, ERC points out that Ahora Repúblicas "strengthens its environmental profile", since it is "a leading figure in the field of the fight against climate change."
This is not the first time that ERC has resorted to high-profile signings for the European elections. In 2019, Oriol Junqueras appeared as the head of the Ahora Repúblicas list when the trial in the Supreme Court for 1-O was still being held. In this context, the Republicans chose to place Diana Riba, partner of former Minister Raül Romeva, later convicted for his role in the process, at number three on the list they formed together with EH Bildu and the BNG.
