Calls to postpone presidential election as Storm Leonardo lashes Portugal and Spain

Heavy rains and strong winds from Storm Leonardo have battered parts of Spain and Portugal, killing at least two people, forcing the evacuation of more than 7,000 residents and prompting calls to postpone the second round of Portugal’s presidential election. The Portuguese government extended a state of calamity in 69 municipalities until the middle of February.

One man died in Portugal and the body of a woman swept away by a river in Andalucía was found on Friday. Authorities in Andalucía evacuated areas near the Guadalquivir river in Córdoba and halted pedestrian access to the city’s Roman bridge. “We expect 30mm [of rain],” regional president Juan Manuel Moreno said, adding that saturated soil and full reservoirs meant even modest rainfall could have serious effects.

About 1,500 residents were ordered to leave homes in the mountain village of Grazalema after water seeped through walls; Moreno warned aquifers were full and could provoke landslides, and geologists were assessing when people could return.

Portugal, Spain, Andalucía, Córdoba, Grazalema