Around 400 anti-fascist activists pushed past several police checkpoints in Maó before officers stopped them near the Vox rally. They blocked both streets leading to the square as supporters tried to leave.
Marchers passed several police checkpoints before officers stopped them near Plaça de la Constitució, only metres from the Vox event at Plaça de la Conquesta. Around 400 anti-fascist activists had blocked the two streets leading to the square as supporters of Santiago Abascal tried to leave the rally. Menorca.info and Ara Balears reported about 400 participants. Europa Press put the crowd at 200-300, while ABC estimated about 300.
The protest did not interrupt the event. Demonstrators blocked both access routes to the rally, delaying attendees’ departure. After the rally, National Police officers charged to disperse protesters. Reports described objects or chairs being thrown during the confrontation, and Ara Balears reported the use of rubber bullets. Tensions rose, but the confrontation did not escalate further.
Members of the CGT union and two local groups organised the mobilisation, which began on 23 October at Parc Rochina in the port, the gathering point authorised by the authorities. Clara Mayans, director of the Insular State Administration in Menorca, said the protest was authorised there rather than at Plaça de la Constitució, citing security concerns and the coincidence of other events. Protesters then climbed the steps towards Plaça de la Conquesta, where Vox was holding its event. They blew whistles and carried banners alongside republican and Palestinian flags.
As the march advanced, officers retreated, even as more police vans and riot-control personnel arrived. Demonstrators called for Menorca to become a centre of opposition to fascism and shouted slogans criticising Abascal. Police eventually blocked their route near Plaça de la Constitució, keeping the march and rally apart until the event ended.
The demonstration was the first rally of Abascal’s weekend tour of the Balearic Islands. It came amid protests at other Vox campaign events that week. A counter-demonstration and substantial police deployment accompanied an Abascal rally in Avilés on 21 October. More than 1,000 people protested at an event in A Coruña, La Sexta reported.
Abascal has denounced protests against his party in several parts of Spain and accused Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of using demonstrators to intimidate Vox supporters. He has also accused the PSOE of resorting to violence and diversionary tactics, including jokes, to distract from alleged corruption involving Sánchez’s circle and broken election promises.
