Spain’s PM Sanchez dares opposition to table no-confidence vote

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on June 16 challenged the conservative opposition to present a no-confidence motion against his minority coalition government, as a deepening corruption scandal grips his ruling Socialist party.

The case against senior Socialist figure Santos Cerdan has intensified both legal and political pressure on Sanchez, one of Europe’s longest-serving leftist leaders, whose inner circle is currently facing multiple investigations, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

Spain’s main opposition parties, the conservative Popular Party (PP) and far-right Vox, have called for Sanchez’s resignation following the release of a judicial report last week. The report alleged that Cerdan had accepted kickbacks in connection with the suspected improper awarding of public contracts.

Following an hours-long emergency meeting with top Socialist officials at party headquarters in Madrid, Sanchez pushed back against the opposition’s demands. 

“They should present a no-confidence motion and tell parliament and the citizens what model of country they want for Spain," he said, speaking after the meeting. 

The judicial report also implicated former transport minister Jose Luis Abalos—once part of Sanchez’s inner circle—and his former adviser, Koldo Garcia. Cerdan, previously the Socialists’ third-highest ranked official, resigned from his post as party organisation secretary last week. On June 16, he also stepped down as an MP, while the party expelled Abalos, who now sits in parliament as an independent.

“Our party is clean and will not cover up the corruption that emerges in our ranks, however painful it may be, Sanchez said.

He also rejected calls for his resignation or early elections, announcing that this week he would hold talks with far-left, Basque, and Catalan separatist parties that support his government.

The PP, meanwhile, reiterated its call for Sanchez to step down and hold early elections.

“The only possible, dignified future is giving the Spanish people their say," PP spokesperson Borja Semper told reporters.

In addition to the Cerdan scandal, ongoing investigations are also targeting members of Sanchez’s close circle, including his wife, his brother, and the country’s Socialist-appointed top prosecutor.

By Sabina Mammadli