The second and last politic debate for the upcoming elections was due last Monday. Surely it will help the people who haven’t taken their final decission yet - like me - to clear their doubts about the candidates.
The two candidates
As we could see last week in the previous debate the scenario is very balanced. My opinion is that Zapatero won with a very few advantage both them - as the vast majority of mass media but the most right-winged claim -. However PP still have a chance to change the course of the elections.
The show of elections
Elections have become a show. A big show where every time more and more any media event become of major importance. Politicians want to reach the more people the better and their presence is even visible at non-traditional (but more trendy) media such internet communities like Flickr, Youtube or Facebook. It’s funny to see the links to their profiles in those virtual communities in the front page of the candidates; e.g. the website of Joan Herrera, ICV candidate for the Congress.
Nevertheless we are many light years from the paradigm of elections in the USA - as usual, Americans are more advanced at this than most of the countries - where not only they focus on press coverage, but also they put an effort on their representatives to take place in the Internet. For instance the republican candidate for the Presidency Barack Obama has 13,453 followers in Twitter, and 15,763 pictures in Flickr.
Politician superstar
Naturally in this show we will find well-known popular people in a strategy one more time copied from the States. Some time ago we saw this happening with Arnold Schwarzenegger becoming the Governator of California and now Hillary Clinton, the wife of the former president Bill Clinton, going in for the Presidence. This is also the case of Ana Botella, married with J.M. Aznar and Madrid’s city councilperson.
This way PP has just signed Manuel Pizarro, well-known in the business sphere because he was the president of Endesa, one of the most important companies of Spain, which received an hostile takeover bid during his command. However and in my humble opinion he has nothing to do against Solbes, dedicated to politics since long time ago with proven efficiency. I don’t think somebody opting for the seat of a Minister getting the affiliate party card some weeks before the elections is acceptable. In addition due to Pizarro heading the list of candidates for Madrid, Gallardón (the Mayor of Madrid) had to settle for his place in the party and not stand for one place in that list.
Solbes and Pizarro face off
We need more politicians like him. We need more politicians that have given their life to the politic world and represent their homeland better than anyboy such J.M. Labordeta (who has already retired) or M.A. Revilla, the current President of Cantabria.
What’s up with minority and green parties?
As you may realized, having got this far in the article I have not written about minority and green parties yet nor they had room in the TV debate to show their programs and initiatives.
This incipient bipartidism that bring us to previous (and darker) epochs in Spanish history is marked more deeply in certain areas of this country than others. This is due to the fact that nowadays republican parties, green parties, nationalist parties and such does not represent an actual alternative. At any rate in other areas of Spain, not in this blaverist roots land that is Valencia. Somebody voting for a minority party this far along the Valencian politic situation is sending their vote straight to /dev/null.
Call for participation
To conclude, I just want to remember you the next 03/09 you have an appointment with ballots. And as the banner says, “If you don’t go, they will come back”. So, vote to any party you want, but do it intelligently. I will do.
John Gruber, the author of 
