This was not the end of the stage in the leadership of the PSPV that Ximo Puig wanted, after having regained the Presidency of the Generalitat Valenciana for his party for eight years and consolidating it as the hegemonic force of the Valencian left. But electoral defeats mark political cycles, and 28-M has ended one of the most successful periods of the Valencian federation; the same one that spent twenty years, between 1995 and 2015, immersed in the disorientation generated by a long, and tragic, journey through the desert. With the step back taken by Ximo Puig, one of the most notorious and vindictive leaders of the PSPV disappears, even greater than that of Joan Lerma, for many socialists.
But the electoral defeat has precipitated his replacement, which was sometimes desired by Pedro Sánchez. In the 2017 PSPV primaries, the general secretary of the PSOE encouraged an alternative candidate for the Valencian federation despite the fact that Puig was already president of the Generalitat: Rafa García, mayor of Burjassot. Ferraz did not win the fight, and Ximo Puig was able to continue directing the PSPV. He even won the last congress with hardly any opposition. But there are accounts that are never forgotten, and his support for Sánchez's defenestration in that famous "federal committee" and his subsequent alliance with Susana Díaz were pending resolution, waiting for an opportunity. The replacement will take the form of an extraordinary congress of the PSPV, shortly.
Ximo Puig has been, despite what has been stated, the most loyal baron to Pedro Sánchez in the most difficult moments. Whether in a pandemic, in the opening of dialogue with the independentists, in the granting of pardons or now with the Amnesty Law, the Valencian socialist leader, a convinced federalist, has always known how to close ranks with the presidency of the Government. This attitude made some members of Ximo Puig's entourage believe that Sánchez would reward him with a portfolio in the new Council of Ministers after 23-J. It was not like that, and that decision precipitated internal criticism in the PSPV: his rivals sensed the opportunity to remove him from the general secretary when they understood that Pedro Sánchez no longer counted on him.
The epilogue of this story also seems to have been scripted by Ferraz. Ximo Puig's two main supporters in Les Corts Valencianes, Arcadi España and Rebeca Torró, were elected Secretaries of State a few days ago. A decision that alleviated the lack of "Valencian socialists" in the Government but that distanced two key pieces in the projection of the former president in the PSPV from Valencia. The offers to Ximo Puig to find a way out of Valencia, one of which was to occupy a position in the OECD representing the Government, meant definitively distancing the socialist from his federation. We will finally see what he does or if he prefers to continue as a senator. In any case, agreeing to move away from the Valencian Community forced him to abandon the leadership of the PSPV.
A new stage is opening in the PSPV, and there are many who, like the leader of the PSPV in Alicante, Alejandro Soler, or the mayor of Mislata, Carlos Fernández Bielsa, have run to replace Ximo Puig, but it cannot be ruled out. Let Ferraz be the one to directly oversee this transition, pointing to Minister Diana Morant as the successor. Ximo Puig would not disagree with this idea, although naturally there could be other possible options or alliances. It remains to be seen whether this transition can be carried out peacefully or, as in the past, a return to fratricidal wars; the same ones that plunged the PSPV into decline for twenty years.
Ximo Puig leaves the leadership of the second Spanish socialist federation, and with him a cycle of success closes. A way of understanding the PSPV as a Valencian, federalist and demanding force against the Government disappears. With Ximo Puig the PSPV has been more PSPV than PSOE, and that, except for the brief period promoted by Joan Romero who participated in that same idea, had never happened in Valencian socialism, not even in the times of Joan Lerma. The former president had an idea of the "Valencian Community" and a consolidated story. Now we will see what the new political project of the PSPV is going to be, because some of those who intend to take over are more PSOE than PSPV.
At the moment, no one talks about ideas, only about occupying power. And it would be good for those who aspire to lead the socialist alternative to carry out projects for social majorities. Taking refuge in the organization or disputing plots of organic power would be the best line of work to approach the abyss, as happened in the past. Ximo Puig knew how to turn around this tragic drive of Valencian socialism and give it back the capacity to be a transformative force. That is his best legacy.
