Podemos demands Atresmedia include Irene Montero in debate

Podemos demands Atresmedia include Irene Montero in the November 26 debate

The situation carries a certain administrative paradox. A party that polls between 1% and 2% writes to a private television network to demand its leader not be excluded from the electoral debate on November 26. Podemos has formally asked Atresmedia — owner of Antena 3, La Sens, Onda Cero, and La Razón — not to exclude Irene Montero from the event, according to a tweet by Diario Red that started the conversation.

The argument accompanying the request is her "constant presence in this country's conversations." And that is where the problem begins: much of that conversation, critics repeatedly argue, revolves around the party's founders rather than their proposals. Visibility is not the same as support.

What electoral weight does Podemos have to demand a spot in the debate?

The figure cited in the discussion is stark: between 1% and 2% voting intention. With such low support, the logical question is why formations with greater backing, such as broad fronts or nationalist parties, are not included first. In this context, the request reads less as a right and more as an aspiration.

A technical detail complicates the demand. Irene Montero sits in the Congress's mixed group (Grupo Mixto). If she were invited, fairness criteria would require inviting all other formations in that group. This is the kind of rule that turns a reasonable request into a logistical nightmare for TV producers.

Congressional representation criteria and the mixed group

Ordering invitations by parliamentary representation yields a clear distribution: PP, PSOE, Vox, Sumar (Broad Front), ERC, Junts, Bildu, PNV, and Podemos. With this order, the purple party makes the list but at the bottom. And a debate with nine or ten chairs ceases to be a debate and becomes a crowded studio.

The conversation also looks toward Catalonia. An event with ERC is mentioned, along with the Republican leadership's response that there will be no further meetings. If this narrative holds, Irene Montero's circle of allies narrows just when she most needs to expand it.

Visibility as electoral currency

Presence on social media is part of the package. It is noted that Irene Montero already uses TikTok to explain her proposals, reopening the old debate on whether algorithms replace seats. A viral video does not automatically translate into votes.

The tone of the discussion quickly drifts into gossip, with comparisons about the candidate's makeup or previous profession. This is the superficial layer of an issue that, underneath, raises a serious question: what criteria should broadcasters use to decide who debates and who watches from home?

In the end, the data that disorients is not the request itself. It is that a party with between 1% and 2% voting intention has managed to make its presence in a debate precisely the topic of conversation.