Valencia's Carlos Mazón Resigns Amid Flood Crisis Controversy

Tue Nov 04 2025 02:24:58 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Carlos Mazón, the president of Spain's Valencia region, has stepped down due to intense criticism over his handling of devastating floods that resulted in 229 deaths last year. The resignation follows public outcry and protest against his leadership during the crisis.

Carlos Mazón has resigned as the president of Valencia after facing backlash over his management of the region's severe flooding that claimed 229 lives. His controversial decision to dine with a journalist while disasters unfolded, along with a late emergency alert response, fueled public anger and calls for his resignation. Mazón acknowledged his mistakes but maintained no ill intent. His resignation marks a complex turning point for the People's Party in Valencia, where dissatisfaction with his leadership had grown.

The president of Spain's Valencia region, Carlos Mazón, has resigned after months of pressure over his handling of flash floods last year.

A total of 229 people died in towns in the Valencia region on 29 October 2024, with a further eight dying in neighbouring regions, in Spain's worst natural disaster for decades.

Many in Valencia blamed Mazón for the scale of the tragedy because of how he and his government responded that day.

It emerged that the regional president had spent nearly four hours in a restaurant with a journalist, Maribel Vilaplana, while the floodwater was wreaking havoc and he did not attend emergency meetings during much of the day.

Mazón's government also failed to issue an emergency alert to the phones of Valencia residents warning them of the floods and providing advice until after 20:00, by which times dozens of people had already died.

I can't go on anymore... I know that I made mistakes, I acknowledge it and I will live with them for the rest of my life, Mazón said as he announced his decision, adding that he should have cancelled his schedule for that day to take charge of the crisis.

Polls had shown that the vast majority of people in Valencia wanted Mazón, of the conservative People's Party (PP), to step down because of his management of the floods.

Monthly protests were held demanding his resignation, most recently on 25 October, when an estimated 50,000 people turned out on the streets of Valencia. Mazón had been making fewer public appearances in recent months because of the abuse he received from members of the public.

However, his insistence on attending the memorial service for victims on the first anniversary of the tragedy last week angered relatives of those who died and a number of them barracked him during the ceremony.

Mazón seemed shaken by the experience, which appeared to prompt his decision to resign. His announcement came the same day that Maribel Vilaplana, the journalist with who he had lunch on the day of the floods, testified before a judge who is investigating possible negligence.

During his resignation announcement, Mazón criticized the left-wing central government of Pedro Sánchez, accusing it of blocking aid to his region purely to cause us political damage. However, he remains a member of the regional parliament, maintaining more legal immunity amid ongoing scrutiny.

The leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, welcomed his announcement and defended him against claims he was responsible for the disaster, asserting that his mistakes should not overshadow the broader realities of political governance.