Francisco Igea Arisqueta (born 17 April 1964) is a Spanish politician of the Citizens party between 2016 and 2023. A doctor by profession, he led the party in the 2019 Castilian-Leonese regional election, and became vice president of the Junta of Castile and León after forming a government with the People's Party leader Alfonso Fernández Mañueco. In the 2022 election, his party lost all their seats except his own. He was previously a member of the Congress of Deputies (2015–2019) and came runner-up in his party's 2020 leadership election.

Biography

Born in Valladolid, Igea graduated in Medicine from the University of Valladolid. A specialist in the digestive system, he worked at a hospital in Palencia as head of department until 2013, when he volunteered for redundancy due to cuts.[1]

Igea contested the primaries to lead Union, Progress and Democracy in the 2015 Castilian-Leonese regional election, losing to Rafael Delgado. He then left the party, for Citizens.[1] He was elected to the Congress of Deputies in the Valladolid constituency in December 2015.[2] The following June, he was the only member of his party in Castile and León to win re-election.[3] In January 2017, he entered his party's central committee, responsible for health.[1]

In February 2019, Igea announced that he would challenge Silvia Clemente in the party primaries to lead in May's regional elections.[4] In March, on a recount, he defeated the former People's Party regional leader.[5] His party became the third largest in the Cortes of Castile and León behind the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) and the PP.[6] In July, his party formed a government with the PP, and he became regional vice president.[7]

In December 2019, a judge closed a case against Igea initiated by a party member who had accused him of threats in March.[8]

Igea announced his candidacy in February 2020 for Citizens' leadership election, standing against Inés Arrimadas.[9] She won by 76.9% to 22.3%.[10]

At the end of 2021, Mañueco called an early election with the aim of governing alone, as his counterpart Isabel Díaz Ayuso had achieved in the Community of Madrid.[11] Igea was named Citizens' lead candidate by the party's national leadership without the need of a primary, citing new rules in the party for when there is an unexpectedly short electoral campaign.[12] The election ended up with Citizens losing all their seats except Igea's while Vox made gains; he offered to align with the PP to top Vox governing.[13]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Gamarra, Lorena (10 March 2019). "Quién es Francisco Igea, el rival de Silvia Clemente que impugnó su elección" [Who is Francisco Igea, Silvia Clemente's rival who challenges her election]. El Independiente (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  2. ↑ "La 'vuelta al cole' de los 32 diputados" [The 'first day back at school' for the 32 deputies]. El Norte de Castilla (in Spanish). 11 January 2016. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  3. ↑ "Igea, único diputado de C's en CyL, promete "sudar" tanto para un nuevo gobierno como para que cambien las cosas" [Igea, only C's deputy in C&L, promises to "sweat" greatly for a new government so that things can change]. La Información (in Spanish). 27 June 2016. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  4. ↑ Sanz, Luis Ángel (26 February 2019). "Albert Rivera rompe Ciudadanos en Castilla y León al imponer a una dirigente del PP" [Albert Rivera fractures Citizens in Castile and León by bringing in a PP leader]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  5. ↑ "Igea le gana las primarias de Ciudadanos a Clemente tras la revisión de los votos" [Igea defeats Clemente in the Citizens primaries after a recount]. ABC (in Spanish). 11 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  6. ↑ "Resultados Elecciones Autonómicas en Castilla y León" [Autonomous Election Results in Castile and León]. El Norte de Castilla (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  7. ↑ "Fernández Mañueco e Igea se rodean de seis hombres y tres mujeres en su gobierno conjunto para Castilla y León" [Fernández Mañueco and Igea are flanked by six men and three women in their coalition government for Castile and León] (in Spanish). CyLTV. 16 July 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  8. ↑ "Absuelto Igea (Cs) de un delito de amenazas contra un militante de su partido" [Igea (Cs) acquitted of threats against a member of his party]. La Vanguardia (in Spanish). 10 December 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  9. ↑ Esteban, Paloma (25 February 2020). "Igea presenta su candidatura contra Arrimadas y pide un debate este jueves" [Igea presents his candidacy against Arrimadas and requests a debate this Thursday]. El Confidencial (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  10. ↑ Sanz, Luis Ángel (8 March 2020). "Inés Arrimadas barre a Francisco Igea con el 77% de los votos en las primarias de Ciudadanos" [Inés Arrimadas sweeps away Francisco Igea with 77% of the votes in the Citizens leadership election]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  11. ↑ "Pablo Casado muestra su apoyo a Mañueco para liderar una victoria "en solitario"" [Pablo Casado shows his support to Mañueco to lead a victory "by ourselves"]. La Opinión de Zamora (in Spanish). Europa Press. 30 December 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  12. ↑ Carvajal, Álvaro (27 December 2021). "Ciudadanos nombra a Francisco Igea candidato en Castilla y León sin primarias y apelando a la "unidad"" [Citizens name Francisco Igea candidate in Castile and León without primaries and calling for "unity"]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  13. ↑ "Igea lamenta la "catástrofe" de Cs y se ofrece al PP para evitar la entrada de Vox en el Gobierno de CyL" [Igea laments Cs' "catastrophe" and offers himself to the PP to avoid Vox entering the Government of Castile and León] (in Spanish). Europa Press. 14 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
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