The former head of Spain's People's Party (PP) in Catalonia, Alejo Vidal-Quadras, was shot in the face on Thursday, Spanish police said.
The 78-year-old was shot in the Salamanca area of central Madrid at around 1:30 p.m. local time (1230 UTC) and taken to hospital, a police spokesperson said.
Spain's emergency services said that he remained conscious after the shooting.
Spain's EFE news agency reported that police were searching for a motorcyclist who disappeared from the scene in a black helmet. Police say no arrests have yet been made.
Alberto Nunez Feijoo, leader of the center-right PP, called for a thorough police investigation.
Vidal-Quadras was the head of the PP in the northeastern Catalonia region during the 1990s.
The politician went on to serve as a member of the European Parliament between 1999 and 2014. He then briefly joined the far-right Vox party.
sdi/nm (Reuters, EFE)
