Sánchez: "With what the PP and Vox mounted with the amnesty and now it turns out that they agree with Puigdemont"

MadridIt's the cherry on top that Pedro Sánchez had left after this week's debate in Congress to talk about corruption. After going on the offensive against the PP – with a classic "and you too"–, this Saturday the Spanish president is testing his strength within the PSOE: the party is meeting in a federal committee with its sights set on next year's municipal and regional elections. The start of the meeting was already an indicator of how things would go: the applause for Pedro Sánchez was long and he, in his "speech", has already put himself in electoral mode. That is to say, far from throwing in the towel, the message outwards has been that the elections will be in 2027 and that they will govern "until next year and beyond" and, inwardly, he has wanted to boost the spirits of his ranks to go out to "win and govern" for the municipal and regional elections of May 23, 27. This Sunday the federal committee will approve the regulations for choosing candidates from now until February.

Just as he did last Wednesday in the Congress of Deputies – he gave an almost identical speech – Sánchez defended the government's continuity because Spain "is experiencing the best moment in its history", contrasting the "apocalyptic" vision of the situation that the right wing is spreading. "How can we not continue?", he asked himself. Furthermore, he launched a dart at the PP and Junts for having allied in Congress to demand his resignation, and he did so with a gesture of complicity towards the President of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, in the front rows of the federal committee: "Salva, dear president, the twists and turns of life. Because to see the PP and Vox voting with Carles Puigdemont's party, trying to oust us from government with what they set up with the amnesty [...] and now it turns out they agree".

Corruption

Looking inward, he also wanted to send a clear message to those who, from within, request information with all the details regarding the judicial cases affecting the PSOE: "This organization has not been financed illegally" and "we have acted decisively against corruption," he said forcefully, and once again classified the cases affecting the PSOE, in line with Moncloa's strategy of separating the wheat from the chaff.

The Spanish president has placed corruption within the former organizational secretariat led first by José Luis Ábalos (already convicted) and then by Santos Cerdán. On the other hand, he has defended the presumption of innocence of the former Spanish president, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, and has limited the investigations into his family — his wife and his brother — to political persecution.

In fact, in Zapatero's case, with whom he said he speaks "regularly," he not only defended that his innocence be preserved but also denounced the "trampling of his fundamental rights" due to the leak of his conversations and agenda that "have nothing to do with the investigation." "It is improper for a democracy like Spain's," he said, also calling on the cadres to champion his legacy in social and civil rights, in addition to recalling that he ended ETA.

Page calls for self-criticism

The forecasts of closing ranks with Sánchez have already been met upon entering the meeting. Of all the leaders of the federations, the only critic has been the president of Castilla La Mancha, Emiliano García-Page, who has asked for self-criticism and even insinuated that the socialists had made a mistake in choosing Pedro Sánchez as leader. "We must not be afraid to give a voice to the citizens," he affirmed, as it pressures the Spanish president to call elections.

On the other hand, the other territorial leaders have been aligned with Pedro Sánchez. At the same time, faced with the multiple corruption cases that affect them, they have presented the PSOE as a victim: "They have taken advantage of the acronyms and we have had reputational damage," lamented Adriana Lastra, leader of the Asturian socialists, who left the PSOE leadership precisely at odds with Santos Cerdán. In turn, the president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, wanted to send a message of strength and "hope": "They will not bend us or silence us. We are not afraid of anything and have a lot of hope for the future".

The atmosphere this Saturday is very different from a year ago, even though new cases have proliferated such as the Zapatero case, Leire Díez, or the already sentenced corruption of José Luis Ábalos. Last July, the federal committee had to renew the position of Santos Cerdán, who was removed for alleged public works commissions, which caused a great impact on the organization. But, in addition, before the conclave began, accusations of harassment against one of the members of the new team in the organization secretariat, Paco Salazar, surfaced, leading to his resignation. No surprises are expected at this Saturday's meeting, and the party's aim is to set course for the regional and municipal elections scheduled for next year.

The organization secretary, Rebeca Torró, has been touring the territory for weeks to address the current situation and discuss the primary regulations to be approved this Saturday. Federations will be able to choose between three possibilities: holding candidate elections in July, November, or February. The PSC is going it alone, as it has its own procedures.

In any case, internal movements have already begun. The deputy spokesperson, Enma López, has resigned from her position in the PSOE executive and has announced in El País that she intends to challenge the current PSOE leader in the Madrid City Council, Reyes Maroto, who in the last elections came in third place behind the PP and Más Madrid. "The regulations have not yet been approved," PSOE sources stated this Friday regarding López's move. An indication that Ferraz preferred to opt for calm and believes she has rushed.

And while the party prepares its electoral machinery at a complicated time, it is also renewing itself to contest the battle of ideas. This Friday it was made public that the former president of Congress, Meritxell Batet, will chair the Avanza foundation, linked to the PSOE. The organization is the socialists' main ideas laboratory, launched precisely by Pedro Sánchez in July 2024 to focus on combating far-right discourse. Avanza was intended to surpass other socialist foundations like Alternativas or Pablo Iglesias, and play a similar role to that of FAES within the PP.