Carlos Mazón, president of Spain’s Valencia region, has resigned a year after catastrophic floods claimed 229 lives, acknowledging his administration’s management failures following months of intense public and political criticism.
“I know I made mistakes and I will live with them for the rest of my life,” Mazón stated Monday, confirming his departure. He added that it was “time to acknowledge one’s own mistakes” and that he “can’t do this anymore.”
The decision comes one year after devastating floods ravaged the region, prompting a sustained outcry over the response by Mazón and his Popular Party (PP)-Vox coalition executive.
Earlier, Mazón had rejected calls for accountability, arguing that “no government in the world has the tools to change, stop or avoid” natural phenomena like the historic rainfall that struck the region.
However, a recent poll indicated that 75% of Valencians believed Mazón should resign, intensifying pressure from political opponents and the public. He later admitted there “were things that should have worked better.”
Cited by Spanish daily El País, Mazón also claimed he would have resigned “a long time ago” if it had been solely his choice. He accused the central Spanish government, led by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of the Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), of avoiding its own responsibilities.
“The government no longer has excuses to continue dragging its feet,” Mazón said, referring to the central administration.
During his resignation statement, which did not allow questions from journalists, Mazón did not clarify whether he would call early regional elections or if he would remain a deputy in the Valencia regional assembly. He instead urged the PP and Vox regional deputies to unite quickly to find a new regional president.