The local political landscape of Calp gains a new player. Domingo Sánchez has made public his decision to lead a new independent political formation, a move that brings him back to the center of the municipal stage. This initiative comes after his recent departure from the Partido Popular and having been a key figure in the turbulent period experienced by Calp's PP leading up to the 2023 elections.
The announcement was made through a video shared on social media, filmed at various locations in the municipality. In it, Sánchez appeals to his personal connection with Calp and presents his proposal as a response to the wear and tear of local politics. In his message, he asserts that the municipality “has lost its soul and its essence as a town” and advocates for a political approach based on proximity, hard work, and active listening.
“"To lead is not to command, it is to listen and to solve."
In the recording, Sánchez also indicates that in the coming months, both the name of the party and the team that will accompany him in this new political phase will be revealed.
Domingo Sánchez's career as a councilor began in 2015, when he joined the municipal corporation with Alternativa Popular per Calp (APPC), a party then part of the local government under the mayorship of César Sánchez. Subsequently, as a result of an agreement between APPC and the Partido Popular, he was included in the popular candidacy for the 2019 municipal elections, serving as a councilor under the PP's banner during the last legislature.
His name gained particular prominence in the months leading up to the 2023 municipal elections, amidst the internal crisis of Calp's PP. In January of that year, just four months before the elections, Mayor Ana Sala withdrew his powers and remuneration, a measure that also affected Hilde Backaert. This dismissal occurred just days after it became public that the Partido Popular was removing Ana Sala as a mayoral candidate, opting for César Sánchez as the lead candidate, a decision that created a deep rift within the party.
Following that episode, Domingo Sánchez's name was also linked to the birth of the local party Tú haces Calpe, established in February 2023 and dissolved just a month later. This formation ultimately called for votes for the Partido Popular, arguing that the fragmentation of the center-right space could harm its electoral prospects.
Now, more than three years after that crisis, Sánchez is making a new move with a project he presents as independent, aiming to re-establish himself in the local political arena. This announcement comes at a time of political reconfiguration in Calp and adds a new element to the municipal panorama. Sánchez, who did not secure a councilor seat in the last elections, reappears with the intention of building his own candidacy and opening a new chapter from outside the traditional right-wing parties. His step forward anticipates a new cycle of movements in Calp's politics, where the wounds of the PP's internal crisis of 2023 remain very present, and where any reordering of the conservative space could have a significant impact on the upcoming electoral scenario.
