The mayor made clear that the PP government will initially draw up the budget proposal and that Vox will then put forward the measures it considers necessary to facilitate its support. Chueca recalled that her party needs one vote to approve the budget and insisted that she remains “open to reaching an agreement.”
Regarding the content of the future budget, Chueca said it will have to increase to address rising expenditure, inflation and personnel costs. The negotiations will also include another sensitive issue: the Low Emission Zone. “I trust that Vox understands that it is impossible to eliminate sanctions entirely because this would lead to the loss of transport subsidies. In the end, users would not understand if the price of public transport suddenly rose by 40%,” she said.
The municipal political landscape will be completed this Thursday with a meeting between Chueca and the spokespeople of the other municipal groups, Lola Ranera (PSOE) and Elena Tomás (Zaragoza en Común), to discuss the new political year. The unaffiliated councillor, Marisa Gaspar, is also expected to attend, and the mayor has assured her that she will meet with her if she is interested. This final point is particularly noteworthy because, if no agreement is reached with Vox, Gaspar’s vote would be enough to pass the budget.
THE PP’S ELECTION LIST HAS NOT YET BEEN FINALIZED
The mayor, who was officially chosen in July as the PP candidate for the next municipal elections, contrasted this situation with that of the other parties. She said that, while her candidacy has already been defined, the other groups are “more distracted” and focused “on their own interests” rather than thinking about Zaragoza.
Regarding the future lists and who will join her in trying to retain the mayor’s office, Chueca declined to provide names or dates, saying that there are still “many months” before that decision is made. She insisted that her team is currently focused on completing the projects of the current term and addressing the city’s needs before turning to the composition of the candidacy.
