Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book discusses in detail the realignment of political parties' platforms in response to the change in the political preferences of the Catalan median voter. Marc Guinjoan and Toni Rodon look at the main possible causes of the increasing support for secession in Catalonia since 2010. Enriqueta Aragons and Clara Ponsat analyses the negotiations between the Catalan and Spanish governments and their interaction with electoral political competition in the contest for Catalan independence. The stability over two decades of the Catalan party system has been upset by the surge of the pro-independence movement. The book also presents a list of counterarguments from the anti-secessionist position. It explores the crucial question of the monetary arrangements of the new state.