Photos: Sergio Betancort
The II Citizen Assembly of SOMOS LANZAROTE, a popular unity candidacy that integrates various transformative organizations and groups on the island (Citizen Alternative May 25, Democratic Alternative of Haría, Canarian Nationalist Alternative, Canarian Green Party and Neighborhood Party) has ratified, by practically unanimous -except for one abstention-, the proposals for electoral lists presented by the local assemblies of the organization.
Finally, Tomás J. López will be the candidate of SOMOS LANZAROTE for the presidency of the Cabildo, while Borja Rubio will run for mayor of Arrecife. María de la Paz Cabrera, current councilor of Citizen Alternative May 25 in the Cabildo, will be number two on the list for the first island institution, while Coralia Lobato will occupy that same position for the capital city council. In turn, the neighborhood leader Andrés Medina, also in the Arrecife candidacy, will occupy the third place.
The rest of the candidacies approved on Friday night at the Sociedad Democracia de Arrecife are headed by Paula Corujo, who will run for mayor of San Bartolomé; José Dorta, candidate for mayor of Haría; Tomás Echevarría, candidate for mayor of Yaiza and Omaira Díaz, candidate for mayor of Teguise. In the coming days, the lists will be completed in the rest of the island's municipalities.
"Changing indignation for illusion"
Tomás J. López, 31 years old, has a degree in History from the University of La Laguna and in Journalism from the Carlos III University of Madrid. He has developed his professional activity in Lanzarote, Madrid and Lima. He currently works as a freelancer in various communication projects. He has collaborated with different social movements, being especially active in the cause against oil exploration.
In his speech, the newly appointed candidate thanked the organizations and citizens that converge in SOMOS LANZAROTE for their "high-mindedness and awareness of the moment our island is experiencing", to turn "the nuances into contributions that enrich the project of social and political change that Lanzarote needs".
"I know that more and more people will join us on this path, because the island is full of men and women who want to change the indignation and weariness caused by the old politics for illusion," he said.
Borja Rubio, 24 years old, has a degree in Political Science and Law from the University of Granada, with a one-year stay at the University of Warsaw (Poland). He has studies in Democracy and Public Decisions, and is developing a Master's Degree in Human Rights with a specialty in disability. He has participated in various social causes, such as students' rights and the fight against oil exploration.
He spoke "thanking the trust and recalling how necessary it was to create a political project of unity with a vocation for government away from traditional political parties", the candidate recalled that "Somos Lanzarote is born to return the institutions to the citizens".
"We need an Arrecife that we can be proud of: without corruption, accessible, inclusive, culturally alive, with attention and dedication to the neighborhoods, participatory, etc... We are going to work to achieve it. The change starts here," he concluded.
"Experience, youth and social commitment"
José Pérez Dorta, current councilor in the Haría city council for Democratic Alternative, will be the candidate of SOMOS LANZAROTE in the northern municipality. Dorta is a teacher at the Pancho Lasso School of Art and has belonged to several neighborhood, social and NGO associations, participating in the creation of different associations related to sustainable rural development such as La Tanganilla, La Cesta Ecológica, or the Cooperative of Ecological Agriculture and Livestock of the Canary Islands "7 Colmenas".
The candidate for mayor of San Bartolomé, Paula Corujo, 27 years old, has a degree in Journalism from the Complutense University of Madrid with a master's degree in Community Management. She has developed her training and professional activity in communication and marketing in Madrid and Lanzarote. She currently works in the area of tourism.
Tomás Echevarría, candidate for mayor of Yaiza, 33 years old, has completed higher studies in Artistic Design. In his social facet, he has participated in youth movements since he was 16 years old, having lived and worked on several islands, participating in different social and cultural movements. He has stood out in recent years for his involvement in the cause against oil.
For her part, the candidate from Teguise, Omaira Díaz, is a resident of Tao, is 24 years old and has studied History at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The candidate has developed various activities in relation to the protection of heritage, as well as in the promotion and development of crafts.