"The press may not be very successful in telling people what to think, but it is stunningly successful in telling its readers what to think about." The phrase, pronounced by political scientist Bernard Cohen in the sixties, admits many nuances adapted to the current world, in which the media no longer monopolize what is known as agenda-setting (basically, the determination of which topics are most relevant). And during the last few days, in political and journalistic circles, there was talk of nothing else but the 30 rental apartments with which the partner of the PSOE spokesperson does business.

The President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, has stood by the spokesperson for the PSOE executive, Montse Mínguez, following the controversy over her partner's real estate properties. When asked from Brussels about the real estate management companies of Mínguez's partner, Sergi Vélez, the socialist leader stressed that he "of course" supports her. Mínguez was ratified this Wednesday as the lead candidate for the socialists for Lleida.

Pedro Sánchez pressed the button for the snap election due to the housing emergency the State is experiencing, personified by the eviction of Maricarmen Abascal, who died a few days later. Housing and, specifically, rents have been at the center of the political debate since then, and the PSOE is trying to position itself as the guarantor of citizens' interests and against speculators. The socialist spokesperson, Montse Mínguez, has been one of the most belligerent in this debate, and now she is precisely the one most singled out by the PP and Junts, once it was published that her partner has a real estate business with dozens of rental apartments. "It is a family business that is dedicated to rentals and complies with the Catalonia housing law," Mínguez justified this Tuesday in an interview on the programEspejo Públicoon Antena 3. The digital media outlet Artículo 14 had published shortly before that her partner has at least one real estate company, Nest Capital, which manages 8 million euros in assets and between 20 and 30 rental apartments. This Wednesday, the same media outlet expanded the information, pointing out that he would have three more companies dedicated to real estate management.

Montse Mínguez (Lleida, 1976) arrived in Madrid as a deputy in 2019, after losing the PSC primaries in the capital of Segrià against the current mayor, Fèlix Larrosa. Six years later, she is making her debut as the first Catalan spokesperson for the PSOE, with the difficult challenge of representing the party in the midst of the Cerdán scandal. She speaks to ARA after the crucial debate in Congress in which the members gave Pedro Sánchez a respite.

In sociology, there is a concept known as the "glass cliff," which means that women are more likely to assume responsibility in crisis situations. There is no doubt that the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) is currently in deep crisis after its last two organizational secretaries, José Luis Ábalos and Santos Cerdán, are under investigation for corruption, and the latter is currently in pretrial detention. To turn the page on this situation, Pedro Sánchez has opted to appoint a woman to the position, Rebeca Torró, and to increase the presence of women in the PSOE's decision-making core at Ferraz.