The Latest: Puigdemont says vote will lead back to democracy
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — The Latest on the regional elections in Catalonia (all times local):
1 p.m.
Ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont says that an election back home is "extraordinarily important" for the region's return to normalcy after Spanish authorities seized control this fall.
Speaking to Catalan reporters in Brussels, where he is evading a Spanish arrest warrant, Puigdemont said that "from the results will come the formula to recover democracy" in Catalonia.
Puidgemont fled to Belgium after central authorities sacked him for pushing ahead with unilateral independence for the region. Other members of his former cabinet, including his no. 2, were jailed under preliminary sedition charges.