Why does ERC continue to support the PSOE?

BarcelonaThe day Judge José Luis Calama indicted former president José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, Oriol Junqueras defended pursuing any "type of corruption", but also warned of possible lawfare: "Always in favor of corruption being pursued and at the same time, I want to recall that some accusations made throughout history were absolutely false and invented." And he gave as an example Jorge Fernández Díaz's "the prosecution will sort it out for you." ERC's spokesperson in Madrid, Gabriel Rufián, also denounced a "witch hunt" against the left, who, despite this, admitted to being "pissed off" by the high regard he has for Zapatero: "If it's true, it's a shame."

As the days have passed, the party has been modulating its discourse and has distanced itself from the case against the former president, but especially after the search of the PSOE headquarters. ERC has set, in this regard, a red line for Sánchez to fall: if the irregular financing of the socialists is proven.

"The Spanish government is neither sustained by ERC nor can ERC bring it down," point out sources from the leadership. The party has asked for explanations from the Spanish president, Pedro Sánchez, about the alleged conspiracy of socialist officials to obstruct judicial cases that were harassing the PSOE. However, the Republicans want to separate the parliamentary day-to-day from what happens to the PSOE, that is, they will not condition their votes on judicial cases: "When we vote, we do so based on whether the issue is good or not for Catalonia," the same sources point out.

Esquerra, moreover, needs the PSOE to remain at the head of the Spanish government to fulfill the investiture agreements, starting with the new financing system. Precisely, this is one of the issues that have been left pending materialization after the agreement that socialists and republicans signed in January. The transfer of IRPF collection has also not materialized, an issue that Esquerra hopes to recover for the autumn, when financing should be reactivated.

Early elections

"We will do nothing that opens the door to a PP and Vox government," they add from the republican leadership. Esquerra does not consider in any way entering into an equation with the popular party to move forward a motion of no confidence against Pedro Sánchez. It is the same thesis that they repeated from the party when a year ago the Cerdán case broke out. However, if the judicial siege on the PSOE escalates even further and there is evidence of alleged irregular financing, Oriol Junqueras's party considers that the situation will be so unsustainable that it will fall on its own. Rufián said this week that it would be time to call for elections so that "the people decide".