Feijóo demands Sánchez's resignation over the sentence against Ábalos: "It is a condemnation of the government"

Madrid"What else needs to happen for Pedro Sánchez to resign immediately?". That is what Alberto Núñez Feijóo asked in a press conference convened to assess what he has called the "serious" sentence of the Supreme Court against José Luis Ábalos. The leader of the PP has argued that the only way out is for the Spanish president to call elections "immediately" in view of what the Popular Party considers "a condemnation of Sánchez's government" because the former Minister of Transport played a predominant role both in the first governments of the socialist leader and in the PSOE as organization secretary and in Sánchez's rise.

According to Feijóo, it is "indecent" that he "continues one more minute" in Moncloa. However, the popular leader maintains the decision not to present a motion of no confidence because he assumes it would fail. A scenario that could strengthen Sánchez at his worst moment, and hence the popular president thinks it would be an "error" on his part to register it when no party in the plurinational majority is willing to vote in favor of it at the moment. At the same time, the head of the opposition has increased pressure on the allies of the Spanish president's investiture to reconsider their position. "What else do they need to withdraw their support and force him to call elections?", he asked.

The diagnosis made by Génova is not shared by Vox, which maintains that the PP should indeed take the step. "The prerogative of the opposition is to present a motion of no confidence. What else needs to happen?", said the spokesperson for the far-right, José Antonio Fúster, at another press conference. However, Santiago Abascal's party has also placed Sánchez's resignation request at the center of its message, rather than pressuring the Popular Party to act. Fúster has called the PSOE a "cesspool of corruption" and the Spanish government a "criminal mafia" and has warned that "the worst is yet to come" because, he said, "Sánchez is willing to do anything to stay in power." "The closer Sánchez's end is, the more dangerous they become," he said. The PP also sees the Spanish president as willing to resist at all costs and recalls that Ábalos's case is only one of dozens of judicial cases that pursue him. "What is he waiting for? For there to be three, five or ten sentences? For one to be dismissed so he can use it as an alibi?", insisted Feijóo, who, despite not planning any move with real effect in Congress, has predicted that "it won't be long" until the change.

In Moncloa, they maintain the same script followed until now, which is to distance themselves from what they define as individual and not systemic behavior. Government sources emphasize the commitment of Sánchez's executive to "transparency, merit, and integrity as guiding principles of public service" and condemn "unreservedly" that individuals linked to the Spanish government have "clearly violated these principles." Regarding Sumar, it has demanded that Sánchez "clean up and put order" in the PSOE so that it "stops being a burden" for the progressive government. For now, the minority partner in the coalition maintains that the legislature must be exhausted. The socialists, in a statement, have not engaged in self-criticism but have defended that the party "acted from the first minute" and have accused Feijóo of "hypocrisy." In the PSOE, they reply that the popular leader cannot give them "lessons" by citing the Kitchen or Gürtel cases, as well as the investigation into the partner of the Madrid president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso.

None of the investiture allies have so far opened the door to letting Sánchez fall after the ruling, and positions remain unchanged despite the judicial shock, although the PSOE has received some reprimand. In this regard, ERC's spokesperson in Congress, Gabriel Rufián, has reiterated on X that the PSOE must give substance to the remainder of the legislature. "Governing is legislating, not resisting," he warned. For their part, at a press conference, the national spokesperson for the Republicans, Elisenda Alamany, urged the socialists to "clean house" and said that "this is not resolved by simply blaming the referee." In a message on X, Junts MP in Congress Josep Maria Cruset has criticized the "irresponsibility" of the socialists, whom he has accused of being responsible for the rise of the far-right. The PSC has limited itself to expressing "respect" for the judicial decisions, while the PSOE spokesperson, Montse Mínguez, has questioned on the same social network whether Víctor de Aldama will not go to prison. "Does it pay to be a corrupter in Spain?" she questioned.