The six movements of Catholic Action in the diocese of the Canary Islands, presided over by Bishop José Mazuelos, have issued a call to citizens ahead of the general elections on November 29, urging a “responsible vote” and stating that a Christian should not support with their vote organizations that promote hatred and discrimination. The statement, dated November 10 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is signed by HOAC, JOC, the Junior Movement, Fráter, Christian Professionals and General Catholic Action.
The text does not call for a vote for any specific candidacy, but it does express concern over the denial of gender-based violence, which it attributes to the right and the far right, and over the rejection of migration and the promotion of xenophobic behavior. The movements consider that parties that exclude migrants and encourage hatred and racism are further removed from the Gospel and the Social Doctrine of the Church, and they recommend evaluating political groups based on what they have done, not only on what they promise during the campaign.
Poverty, housing and gender-based violence as arguments
To support their appeal, the signatories recall that around 704,000 people, three out of every ten inhabitants of the archipelago, are at risk of poverty and social exclusion, including 17 % of those in employment, and that there are 142,400 unemployed. They add that housing prices have risen by 108 % since 2013 compared to a 30 % increase in wages, making it difficult for young people to become independent, and they cite an INE report that places the Canary Islands last among regions in quality of life at work, leisure and education.
The statement also mentions a 5.4 % increase in reports of gender-based violence in the second quarter of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025. Regarding public debate, the movements regret that campaigns rarely allow for a real discussion of programs and denounce “insults, hoaxes and half-truths.” They also note that citizens elect their parliamentary representatives by province and that the prime minister is decided later in Congress.
References to the Gospel and Pope Francis
On the doctrinal level, the appeal invokes the criteria of “the defense of the dignity of every person and the option for impoverished groups,” and draws on two passages from the Gospel of Saint Matthew: 6:20 and 25:31-46. It also criticizes the capitalist system and recalls a statement by Pope Francis in 2023: “an economy that kills, that excludes, that pollutes, that wages war, is not an economy.”
The full text can be read on the page of Pastoral Social e Innovación of the Archdiocese of Madrid, and the magazine Noticias Obreras, published by HOAC, has also disseminated it. The movements also mention the defense of life, honesty and religious freedom among Christian values, although the bulk of the document focuses on poverty, migration and the rejection of hate speech.