Secretary General of the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo
The Secretary General of the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo is the head of the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (National Confederation of Labor; CNT), a Spanish confederation of anarcho-syndicalist labor unions. The position is elected by a congress or plenary session of the confederation. The position's powers are limited to technical and administrative affairs.
Since the confederation does not have fixed headquarters, the elected Secretary General's local federation becomes the confederation's central operations and a local plenary session of the local federation chooses the secretariats for other leadership positions. Together they are known as the Secretariado Permanente del Comité Confederal (Permanent Secretariat of the Confederal Committee, or SPCC). They, together with other regional federation's secretaries general, form the full Confederal Committee. The first general secretary of the CNT, chosen at its 1910 constitutional congress, was José Negre. He had been secretary general of Solidaridad Obrera, a Catalan union and precursor to the CNT. Thus Barcelona was the first headquarters.
The CNT operated clandestinely during years of repression and splintered. Sources support several timelines of CNT Secretaries General during this time.
Through the Civil War (1910–1939)
1. Between 1911 and 1914 the organization was in hiding, in such a way that it cannot be guaranteed that José Negre actually held the position between 1913 and 1914.
2. Provisionally replaced by Manuel Buenacasa between August and November 1917.
3. Some consider that the term in office of Juan Peiró ended at the end of 1922 and that from that date to March 1923 the general secretariat was held by Salvador Seguí.
4. Some versions say that Manuel Adame could have been Secretary General before Paulino Díez and that Pedro Vallina could replace him.
5. His first surname also appears as García and Gracia.
6. Some sources consider that the SP CN had already established itself in Zaragoza by the end of 1922.
7. At this time it is unknown if there was a general secretary, although the possibility of Ángel Pestaña occupying the position and the SPCN return to Barcelona.
8. Occasionally replaced by Manuel Sirvent according to some sources and by Francisco Martínez according to others.
9. According to M. Pérez until June 1932.
10. Some sources place Joaquín Ascaso immediately before, until December 1933.
11. It seems that he resigned after the Zaragoza congress of 1936 and that he was provisionally replaced by David Antona and Antonio Moreno in Madrid throughout the summer, returning to the general secretariat between September and mid-November.
During Franco (1939–1976)
During this period, the CNT worked clandestinely both inside Spain and in French exile. A schism among the exiles created two confederal committees with their own corresponding secretaries general.
In Spain
| Name | Took office | Left office |
|---|---|---|
| Esteban Pallarols Xirgu | April 1939 | November 1939 |
| Manuel López López | January 1940 | July 1940 |
| Celedonio Pérez Bernardo | July 1940 | February 1941 |
| Eusebio Azañedo Grande | December 1942 | August 1943 |
| Manuel Amil Barciá | September 1943 | September 1944 |
| Siegfried Catalá Tineo | September 1944 | March 1945 |
| Ramón Rufat Llop | April 1945 | July 1945 |
| José Expósito Leiva | July 1945 | October 1945 |
| Ángel Morales Vázquez | November 1945 | March 1946 |
| Lorenzo Íñigo Granizo | March 1946 | April 1946 |
| Enrique Marco Nadal | May 1946 | April 1947 |
| Antonio Ejarque Pina | May 1947 | August 1947 |
| Manuel Villar Mingo | August 1947 | November 1947 |
| Antonio Castaño Benavent | April 1948 | July 1949 |
| Miguel Vallejo Sebastián | July 1949 | June 1951 |
| Cipriano Damiano | June 1951 | June 1953 |
| Ismael Rodríguez Ajax | October 1960 | October 1961 |
| Francisco Calle Mancilla | April 1962 | February 1964 |
| Cipriano Damiano González | April 1964 | April 1965 |
| Francisco Royano Fernández | May 1965 | September 1968 |
In exile
| Name | Election date | Agency | Town |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mariano Rodríguez Vázquez 1 | February 25, 1939 | General Council of the MLE | Paris |
| José Germán González | June 1943 | National Plenary (confederal) | Mauriac |
| Juan Manuel Molina Mateo | September 1943 | National Plenary (confederal) | Tourniac |
| Francisco Careño | March 1944 | National Plenary (confederal) | Muret |
| Juan Manuel Molina Mateo | October 1944 | National Plenary (confederal) | Toulouse |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | May 1945 | Paris Congress | Paris |
1. After his death, Germinal Esgleas Jaume took over.
Orthodox faction
| Name | Election date | Agency | Town |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | - | - | - |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | August 1946 | Toulouse | |
| José Peirats Valls | October 1947 | Congress of Local Federations | Toulouse |
| Pedro Herrera Camarero | April 1947 | I Intercontinental Conference | - |
| Emilio Julio González | October 1948 1 | Congress of Local Federations | - |
| Luis Blanco | February 1949 | II Intercontinental Conference | Toulouse |
| José Peirats Valls | May 1950 | I National Plenary (confederal) | Toulouse |
| Martín Villarupia | April 1951 | II Intercontinental Plenary | Toulouse |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | July 1952 | III Intercontinental Plenary | Aymare |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | July 1953 | IV Intercontinental Plenary Session | Toulouse |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | August 1954 | 5th Intercontinental Plenary | Toulouse |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | August 1955 | VI Intercontinental Plenary Session | Toulouse |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | July 1956 | VII Intercontinental Plenary Session | Toulouse |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | August 1957 | VIII Intercontinental Plenary Session | Toulouse |
| Roque Santamaría Cortiguera | August 1958 | IX Intercontinental Plenary | Toulouse |
| Roque Santamaría Cortiguera | September 1959 | X Intercontinental Plenary | Vierzon |
| Roque Santamaría Cortiguera | August 1960 | Congress of Local Federations | Limoges |
1.He resigned in December 1948.
Possibilist faction
| Name | Election date | Agency | Town |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ramón Álvarez Palomo | November 1945 | Plenary of Regionals of Origin | Toulouse |
| Ramón Álvarez Palomo | August 1946 | Plenary | Toulouse |
| José Juan Domenech | December 1947 | I National Plenary (confederal) of Regionals | Toulouse |
| José Juan Domenech | May 1948 | Plenary | - |
| José Juan Domenech | February 1949 | II National Plenary (confederal) | - |
| Helios Sánchez | June 1950 | III National Plenary (confederal) | - |
| Miguel Vallejo Sebastián | June 1952 | IV National Plenary (confederal) | - |
| Miguel Vallejo Sebastián | March 1954 | V National Plenary (confederal) | - |
| Ramón Liarte | November 1955 | VI National Plenary (confederal) | - |
| Ginés Alonso | August 1957 | VII National Plenary (confederal) | - |
| Ginés Alonso | October 1958 | VIII National Plenary (confederal) | - |
| Ginés Alonso | March 1960 | IX National Plenary (confederal) | Clermont Ferrand |
Reunification of exiled factions
| Name | Election date | Agency | Town |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roque Santamaría Cortiguera | August 1961 | Congress of Local Federations | Limoges |
| Roque Santamaría Cortiguera | August 1962 | Intercontinental Plenary | Toulouse |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | October 1963 | Congress of Local Federations | Toulouse |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | August 1965 | Congress of Local Federations | Montpellier |
| Fernando Alemany | August 1967 | Intercontinental Plenary | Marseille |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | August 1969 | Intercontinental Plenary | Bordeaux |
| Germinal Esgleas Jaume | August 1971 | Intercontinental Plenary Session | Marseille |
| Marciano Sigüenza 1 | August 1973 | Intercontinental Plenary Session | Marseille |
| Alejandro Lamela | August 1975 | Congress of Local Federations | Marseille |
1. He resigned in January 1975.
Since the transition to democracy (1976–present)
| Name | Took office | Left office | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Juan Gómez Casas | August 1976 | April 1978 | Madrid |
| Enric Marco | April 1978 | December 1979 | Barcelona |
| José Bondía Román | December 1979 | January 1983 | Madrid |
| Antonio Pérez Canales | January 1983 | - | - |
| Fernando Montero | July 1983 | - | - |
| Juan Gómez Casas | 1985 | - | - |
| José Luis García Rúa | March of 1986 | 1990 | Granada |
| Vicente Vilanova | 1990 | - | Valencia |
| José Ros | November 1992 | - | Barcelona |
| Luis Fernando Barba | May 1995 | December 1995 | Granada |
| José Luis Velasco Sanz | December 1995 | February 1998 | Madrid |
| Luis Fuentes | December 1998 | October 2000 | Bilbao |
| Ana Sigüenza | October 2000 | March 2003 | Madrid |
| Iñaki Gil | April 2003 | July 2005 | Vitoria-Gasteiz |
| Rafael Corrales Valverde | July 2005 | August 2007 | Seville |
| Fidel Manrique | August 2007 | December 2010 | Torrelavega |
| Alfonso Álvarez | December 2010 | April 2013 | Córdoba |
| Pedro Serna | April 2013 | April 2015 | Valladolid |
| Martín Paradelo | April 2015 | July 2017 | Santiago de Compostela |
| Enrique Hoz | July 2017 | 2019 | Bilbao |
| Miguel García | 2019 | present | Lebrija |