Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont, who fled into exile in 2017, has moved from Belgium to the south of France to run in the early regional elections in Catalonia on May 12.
At the start of the election campaign on Saturday in the small town of Elne in southern France, not far from the border with his homeland, Puigdemont presented the list of candidates for his conservative Junts party.
The 61-year-old had announced he would run as the top candidate in late March, when he stated that "the most important goal we have set ourselves is to make the independence process a success."
On Saturday, he said businesswoman Anna Navarro Schlegel would run behind him, followed by former regional minister Josep Rull.
Puigdemont accused the incumbent Catalan regional government under Pere Aragonès from the left-wing separatist party ERC of having lost its bearings.
Puigdemont faces being arrested in Spain for his role in the illegal 2017 independence referendum and the region's attempted secession from Spain. He previously stressed that he would nevertheless return to Barcelona after the election for the parliamentary debate on a new head of government. This debate could take place on June 25 at the latest.
By then, the amnesty law for Catalan separatists could already be in force. Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had agreed to the amnesty with the separatists in order to secure his re-election last autumn with their votes.
In Spain, the prospect that Puigdemont could win the election and once again push for a breakaway from the economically strong region in the north-east of the country has sparked great concern.
Additionally, the prime minister's minority government is dependent on the votes of the separatists. According to polls, the Socialists could once again become the strongest party, but miss out on an absolute majority again. The Junts and ERC could perform roughly equally well.
Catalonia is still suffering from the consequences of the chaotic 2017 separation attempt. The after-effects include political instability as well as corporate and capital flight.