Franco homage to be dropped from Spanish town

A town in the west of Spain, near the Portuguese border, is set to change its name to dissociate itself from former Spanish dictator Francisco Franco.

Guadiana del Caudillo is located in the region of Extremadura and has a population of just over 2,000.

Read more: Spain orders family to move dictator's remains

"El Caudillo," which translates as "The Commander," was the name given in honor of Franco after the town was built during his regime. However, following a defeat for Spain's far-right party, Vox, in local elections, the decision was taken to drop the term.

The Socialists came out on top in Sunday's vote and, as a result, the incoming mayor said all symbols of Spain's dictatorship will be taken away.

"It will be the first measure we take," Francisco Moreno told Reuters.

Symbol to come off town hall

The move follows the removal in recent years of a succession of statues and street names in deference to the former dictator and his generals.

A plaque commemorating Franco can be seen outside Guadiana del Caudillo's town hall, along with his regime's symbol, an eagle, which is protected by bulletproof glass.

"Both the armored plaque of the City Council, which Franco himself inaugurated in 1951, and the Eagle of San Juan and everything else where is placed 'Caudillo'… We are going to try to have all of these removed before the end of June," the future mayor confirmed, declaring that "the ballot box has spoken."

Franco rose to power at the end of the Spanish Civil War in 1939, and ruled until his death in 1975. 

Moreno said members of the community would choose a new name. "Maybe they just want to leave it as Guadiana. I don't know," he said.

Moreno accused outgoing Mayor Antonio Pozo, who joined Vox last year after leaving the conservative People's Party, of being on a "personal crusade." The new mayor, who will be sworn in on June 15, also said he did not want the municipality to be brandished with the tag of being "like a Francoist town."

Pozo had maintained a judicial dispute with authorities following the withdrawal of subsidies to the town for violating the law of historical memory. According to Moreno, the town lost about 400,000 euros ($446,000) in regional government funding due to its refusal to remove Franco symbols.

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jsi/se (Reuters, EFE)