BARCELONA, Spain (AP) – Residents and politicians in and outside Catalonia are digesting election results which further exposed the sharp divisions between those for and against independence.
Though pro-Spain Ciutadans (Citizens) collected most votes in Thursday’s election in the restive region, it was a bittersweet victory for the business-friendly party as separatist parties won most seats in the region’s parliament.
If they work together, the pro-independence parties have the ability to forge a majority in the Catalan parliament and form the next government. However, past squabbles between them suggest it won’t be easy.
Catalan independence supporters celebrate at the ANC ( Catalan National Assembly ) headquarters after results of the regional elections in Barcelona, Spain, Thursday, Dec. 21, 2017. The pro-secession bloc won a majority but the anti-independence Ciutadans (Citizens), led by 36-year-old lawyer Ines Arrimadas, won the highest number of votes for a single party. ANC is Catalan pro independence platform promoting the political independence of Catalonia.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Parties are already holding meetings to assess the new political landscape.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is scheduled to hold a press conference at 2 p.m. (1300GMT) on Friday.
Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, who campaigned from Belgium where he is evading a Spanish judicial probe into his recent attempt to split Catalonia from Spain, is also scheduled to speak.
![People at the Junts Per Catalunya (Together for Catalonia) party headquarters celebrate Catalan regional election results in Barcelona, Spain, on Thursday, Dec. 21, 2017. The pro-secession bloc won a majority in Catalan regional elections, but the anti-independence Ciutadans (Citizens), led by 36-year-old lawyer Ines Arrimadas, won the highest number of votes for a single party. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1/2017/12/22/10/wire-1954066-1513940254-591_634x424.jpg)
People at the Junts Per Catalunya (Together for Catalonia) party headquarters celebrate Catalan regional election results in Barcelona, Spain, on Thursday, Dec. 21, 2017. The pro-secession bloc won a majority in Catalan regional elections, but the anti-independence Ciutadans (Citizens), led by 36-year-old lawyer Ines Arrimadas, won the highest number of votes for a single party. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
![Ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, center, leaves after a press conference at the Square Meeting Center in Brussels on Thursday, Dec. 21, 2017. The pro-secession bloc won a majority in Catalan regional elections, but the anti-independence Ciutadans (Citizens), led by 36-year-old lawyer Ines Arrimadas, won the highest number of votes for a single party. Several members of the ousted Cabinet, including Puigdemont, have campaigned from Brussels, where they sought refuge from Spanish justice. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1/2017/12/22/10/wire-1954068-1513940257-801_634x413.jpg)
Ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, center, leaves after a press conference at the Square Meeting Center in Brussels on Thursday, Dec. 21, 2017. The pro-secession bloc won a majority in Catalan regional elections, but the anti-independence Ciutadans (Citizens), led by 36-year-old lawyer Ines Arrimadas, won the highest number of votes for a single party. Several members of the ousted Cabinet, including Puigdemont, have campaigned from Brussels, where they sought refuge from Spanish justice. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
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