Patxi López in regard of the May 2017 PSOE leadership election. He found himself on the losing side of the primary election after the unexpected win of Sánchez over Susana Díaz and López, and soon after, in July 2017, he was replaced as leader of the PSOE La Rioja by , thus his political clout was reduced to his deputy seat obtained at the June 2016 general election. Member of the European Parliament, 2019–present Sánchez found a place for his former right-hand in the 11th slot of the PSOE electoral list for the May 2019 European Parliament election in Spain with Luena being finally included in the 10th place of the list after Sami Naïr (prospective #3) was barred from contesting the election by the Junta Electoral Central. Elected as MEP, In parliament, Luena is part of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) political group. He joined the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI). In this capacity, he was the parliament's rapporteur on the EU's strategy for biodiversity in 2021, calling for legally binding measures to halve the use of chemical pesticides, cut fertilizer use by 20% and expand protected areas of land and sea by 2030. In addition to his committee assignments, Luena also became a member of the parliament's delegation for relations with the Korean Peninsula (DKOR), assuming a vice-chair role. He is also a member of the Spinelli Group. References Informational notes Citations Living people MEPs for Spain 2019–2024 Spanish Socialist Workers' Party MEPs Members of the 9th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the 10th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the 11th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the 12th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Politicians from La Rioja Spanish municipal councillors Members of the 7th Parliament of La Rioja (Spain) 1980 births