Elections to the fishermen's guilds to renew the governing bodies

The Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food has called for elections to fill the positions of the governing bodies of the fishermen’s guilds, their territorial federations, and the National Catalan Federation of Fishermen’s Guilds. The call is made through Order ARP/169/2026, of September 4, signed by the counselor Òscar Ordeig i Molist and published in the Official Gazette of the Generalitat de Catalunya (DOGC) no. 9750, of September 14, 2026 (official reference CVE-DOGC-A-26251034-2026).

A process in three phases

The electoral process begins on September 14, 2026 for the fishermen’s guilds, November 17, 2026 for the territorial federations, and December 22, 2026 for the National Catalan Federation of Fishermen’s Guilds. Voting in all guilds will take place on October 24, 2026, while the election of the patró or patrona major (head of the guild) and the members of the chapter of each guild will be held on November 7, 2026.

The call is based on Law 22/2002, of July 12, on fishermen’s guilds, and Decree 96/2012, of September 4, on the electoral procedure of fishermen’s guilds and their federations. The general electoral regime provided for in Organic Law 5/1985, of June 19, applies supplementarily.

The Electoral Board

The Electoral Board, based at the Directorate General for Maritime Policy and Sustainable Fisheries, is composed of:

• Itziar Segarra Diaz, Director General for Maritime Policy and Sustainable Fisheries, as president.
• Martí Puig Cabeza, head of the Marketing and Fisheries Structures service, as deputy president.
• Iris Bigas Spieksma, chief lawyer, representing the department’s Legal Advisory.
• Carlos Martín Pallarès, head of Sectoral Organizations and the Fishing Fleet.
• Mario Vizcarro Gianni, secretary of the National Catalan Federation of Fishermen’s Guilds.
• Patricia Pla Cuenca, head of Legal Coordination and Sanctioning Procedure, as secretary.

The Board is completed by deputy members Eric Corral Fontanet, Lucía Martínez Posse, Xavier Domènech Vernet, and Eduardo del Campo Moya.

Special provisions for small guilds

The order establishes special rules for guilds where the number of members does not allow for the constitution of the corresponding electoral committee or polling station. In these cases:

• The functions of the electoral committee are exercised by the Electoral Board.
• Voting takes place at the polling station of the nearest guild, preferably within the same territorial constituency.
• Voting is always conducted with separate and duly identified ballot boxes for each affected guild.

Furthermore, voting cannot take place on a Sunday; if the scheduled day is a public holiday Saturday, the vote shall be held on the preceding Friday or the following Monday. Sessions of the electoral committees and the Electoral Board may be held remotely via electronic means.

Calendar and closing of the process

The annexed electoral calendar sets the dates for all acts, from the public exhibition of the provisional census (September 17 to 21) to the definitive proclamation of the candidates and the constitution of the general boards. The elections for the governing bodies of the territorial federations will be voted on December 12, 2026, and those of the National Catalan Federation of Fishermen’s Guilds on January 16, 2027. The electoral administration bodies will be dissolved on February 25, 2027.

The call affects the entire Catalan fishing sector and guarantees the renewal of the governing bodies of the guilds, the territorial federations, and the National Federation, with specific measures so that small-scale guilds can hold elections without organizational obstacles.

Fuente: Diari Oficial de la Generalitat de Catalunya (DOGC), no. 9750, September 14, 2026, Other provisions section, pp. 1-10 (official reference: CVE-DOGC-A-26251034-2026).