The local merge of Don Benito and Villanueva: the milkmaid's tale that required VAR to decide the outcome of the referendum

The possibility of a new local merger made the headlines again in 2021 when two municipalities in Extremadura that coexist 4km apart, Don Benito with 37,275 inhabitants and Villanueva de la Serena with 25,837, announced their plans to merge into a new town that would become the third largest in Extremadura in terms of population and the second in terms of GDP. This idea of merging was not new, as it had already been raised unsuccessfully in the past - most recently in 2004. However, the mayors of both localities intended this to be definitive and decided to make the merger conditional, based on garnering a 66% majority of popular support in a referendum. Making the merger subject to popular approval in a consultation called specifically for this purpose, was a singular novelty, especially in a country that has always looked askance at referendums, even more so after the secessionist crisis in Catalonia. Not in vain, both municipalities had to apply to the Council of Ministers for the approval of a non-binding consultation following the provisions of Article 71 of the Ley reguladora de las Bases del Régimen Local. This was granted in November 2021 with the referendum scheduled for February 20, 2022. The authorization kickstarted a process to convince the public that the merger was in the best interest of both municipalities. In principle, this did not seem to incur any major difficulties since all political parties, in an unusual coincidence, firmly supported the merger of the two municipalities, which had already shared different services for years. In fact, the self-imposed objective - since this does not appear in the decree approved by the central government - of reaching 66% support from both municipalities in order to ensure the irreversibility of the merger, did not seem to be a significant obstacle as it was widely perceived that the majority of the population was in clear favor.

The calm campaign was dominated by the bright economic future that the union would bring. Promises of new investments, increased funding from the central government, improved public services, higher wages, and rates of employment and a host of projects to develop together after the union began to inundate the weeks leading up to the referendum. However, in the midst of this apparent calm, fate had a final dramatic twist in store. When the polls closed and while the champagne was cooling, the first results seemed disconcerting. The “yes” to the union had comfortably won in Villanueva while in Don Benito, despite being the winning option, it was slightly below 66% with half of the votes counted. In the midst of a tension that no one expected, chaos erupted. The website reporting the referendum’s results stopped functioning properly, giving contradictory results until it finally stopped working all together. After several hours of tension, meetings behind closed doors, a shadow recount and some controversy due to the information blackout, the definitive results were published after midnight. In Villanueva de la Serena, 90.49% of the votes were in favor, while 9.03% voted against, with a 58.94% turnout. On the other hand, in Don Benito, support for the merger was 66.27% with 33.21% voting against with a 50.42% turnout. By just a couple of votes (0.27%), the objective was achieved and both mayors celebrated the upcoming merger in the early hours. Even so, the computer fiasco spoiled the expected party - the champagne stayed in the fridge - and more than a few will have doubts about the outcome and what happened during the long and tense hours of waiting.

The choice of marking 66% of votes as a "clear majority" - a la Canada - nearly became a double-edged sword for the union's supporters. In fact, beyond guaranteeing the irreversibility of the union by sealing it with strong popular support, there have been no detailed explanations as to why that figure was chosen. More than one will surely be thankful not to have mentioned two-thirds as the magical figure, because in that case the result would have appeared anticlimactic. The causes of the unexpected rise of the “no” vote in Don Benito were not clear. No political formation defended it and there were hardly any public manifestations in this sense. However, the importance of social networks being the ideal vehicle to bring together the critics of the merge once again went unnoticed. A stronger more rooted local identity? Historical rivalries between neighbors? The fear that the larger town would receive fewer benefits than the smaller one? Questions that will have to be resolved on the long path towards a union which will only reach completion in 2027. In the meantime, the process has just started. The first step is to choose a name for the newborn town, another aspect that aims to differentiate it from Galicia’s previously failed mergers and one which will mark a new beginning in the Guadiana’s upper valley. The most complicated step has already been taken, now come years of long bureaucratic efforts to materialize the union and reap its expected benefits. Long life to the new - still unnamed - town!