MADRID – Spain’s main conservative leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, on Monday accused the governing Socialists of being “corruption-riddled,” saying that 2025 has been the worst year “of any government in the country’s democratic history.”
His sharp rebuke comes amid mounting corruption probes and sexual harassment scandals involving high-ranking socialist officials and cabinet members close to the inner circle of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.
“We have witnessed a political and moral overflow that undermines trust, erodes coexistence, and degrades politics,” Feijóo claimed.
Other cases also allegedly involve public procurement irregularities involving senior officials personally appointed by Sánchez, as well as the prime minister’s wife and brother, both awaiting trial in 2026 over alleged corruption.
Sánchez’ own allies have also called out the critical situation faced by the Socialists.
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Within the ruling coalition, the leader of leftist Sumar, Yolanda Díaz, has spoken of an acute government crisis and called for reforms.
Socialist leaders themselves have called for Sánchez to step down amid growing scandals, which many believe are dragging the PSOE down.
Earlier in October, the move by Sánchez’s Catalan allies Junts to break relations with the PSOE left the prime minister with virtually no support for key legislation, including the general state budget and pending judicial and fiscal reforms.
Sánchez has repeatedly ruled out resigning or calling early elections.
When asked by the press about possible coalition agreements with the far-right party Vox in the event of an electoral victory in the 2027 general elections, Feijóo stated that his party is striving for “an absolute majority” in the upcoming ballots, but doesn’t rule out “specific agreements” with Vox.
“Our cordon sanitaire is against Bildu, not Vox,” concluded the PP leader, referring to the Basque separatist party Bildu, led and made up of convicted members from the defunct Basque terrorist group ETA.
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