The right-wing party staged a demonstration on Wednesday in Vallecas, a neighborhood known for its support for left-wing parties, to kick off its campaign ahead of early regional elections in the autonomous community of Madrid scheduled for May 4. The rally was perceived by local residents as a provocation and prompted them to hold their own protest.
After the VOX party's demonstration started, activists from the left threw stones and bottles at a police cordon set up along the place hosting the right-wing rally. Police responded by deploying batons.
"This is a provocation. The last time the right wing activists held their rally in the district was 40 years ago, there was one victim [back then] ... For VOX, this is an advertisement, but we must make it clear that we do not need them," a local resident told Sputnik.
During the previous 2019 election, only 5 percent of Vallecas residents voted for the VOX party, while representatives of left-wing parties gained 77 percent of the vote.
