Gabriel Rufián's curious silence amid the ongoing fight between ERC and Podemos

Gabriel Rufián embodies in a single figure one of the most basic characteristics of partitocracy: the blend between politics and media prominence. Rufián has built this figure through a polarizing and very tough profile. This explains why he stirs up strong feelings on both sides.

Media influence allows Rufián to be a maverick on many occasions, something that has led him, for example, to have a close friendship with Podemos and their plurinational theses. Nobody fails to notice that Rufián has often praised figures like Ione Bellara or Irene Montero. In fact, he has asserted that Montero should be the leader of the Spanish left.

However, another characteristic of being highly mediatic is measuring silences, and now we are witnessing one of Rufián's silences. These days, ERC and Podemos have become embroiled in a Byzantine debate about the "racism" of the Mossos and of Catalonia in general. In a recent interview for Ara, Belarra said that transferring immigration powers to Catalonia would only lead to racist raids and similar things.

This, which has struck a nationalist nerve, has been very poorly received in the pro-separatism galaxy. Many have criticized Belarra and Podemos, among them Oriol Junqueras. On social media, Junqueras said about Bellara's words that "before, Albert Rivera and Inés Arrimadas used to say these things":

Immediately afterward, Iglesias appeared to take a jab at Junqueras and remind him that they, those from Podemos, went to visit him in prison. "Don't disrespect us," Iglesias concluded:

Rufián?

Gabriel Rufián hasn't said anything. At most, as is usual when you want to avoid debates, he has shared messages from people close to ERC. These are moderate messages that, in ERC's style, are not very specific:

The relevant point is that it is once again confirmed that Rufián is a political figure with enough sovereignty to not follow the party's dictates. On the contrary, he can open debates, close others, and ignore those that suit him. This way, the idea is reinforced that Rufián is a politician more functional for Madrid's political machinery than for Catalonia's.

Meanwhile, Rufián is already positioning himself for the next scenario of a PP government, perhaps supported by Vox, in which the left is left without the Sanchista umbrella. In this sense, some kind of joint strategy from the "sovereigntist" lefts is to be expected. There, Rufián will have a very prominent role.