Latest news with #PSOE
The Guardian
8 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Tens of thousands protest in Madrid against Pedro Sánchez's government
Tens of thousands of people have gathered in central Madrid to protest against the government of Spain's socialist prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, and to demand an early general election, as his party, his administration and his family continue to be beset by a succession of corruption allegations. The demonstration was led by Alberto Núñez Feijóo, the leader of the conservative Popular party
Bloomberg
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Spain Opposition Calls for Early Elections as Thousands Rally in Madrid
Spain's main opposition party rallied thousands of people in a demonstration in the heart of Madrid, calling for early elections following accusations of corruption against the Socialist-led government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. 'Mr. Sanchez: Stop hiding, stop lying, stop fleeing,' Alberto Nunez Feijoo, leader of the conservative People's Party, said in front a crowd waving national flags and chanting 'Sanchez, resignation' on a hot, sunny day in the capital. 'Surrender to democracy, call elections, we want them now,' he added.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Spain: Tens of thousands demand new election at Madrid rally
An opposition-led protest against government corruption in Spain drew tens of thousands of people on Sunday. Officials put the number of people at the "Mafia or Democracy" rally in Madrid at up to 50,000, while the city's right-wing mayor spoke of 100,000 people. Plaza de Espana, a large square in the center of the Spanish capital, was crowded with demonstrators, many waving red and yellow Spanish flags. Mayor Jose Luis Martínez-Almeida told protesters that Spain's opposition People's Party (PP) wants to "drive out the mafia as quickly as possible and restore our democracy," in a reference to Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's left-wing government. Todo este deterioro político e institucional tiene que llegar a su fin. ¡Basta ya de arrinconar, perseguir y despreciar a esta España plural y de todos!@IdiazAyuso — PP Comunidad de Madrid (@ppmadrid) June 8, 2025 Many of the protesters chanted, "Pedro Sanchez, resign!" in reaction to a leaked audio recording allegedly showing political activist Leire Diez, at the time member of the Socialist PSOE party, waging a smear campaign against a police unit. The police unit had investigated graft allegations against Sanchez's wife, brother and his former right-hand man. Diez has denied the allegations, insisting that she was conducting research for a book and was not working on behalf of Sanchez or PSOE. She has since quit the party. The Diez scandal is one of several graft investigations circling Sanchez and his allies. Others include alleged donations to lawmakers close to the PSOE linked to a tax fraud case. Having accused the government of "mafia practices" over the affair, PP leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo told protesters Sunday that the PSOE had "stained everything — politics, state institutions, the separation of powers," before demanding a snap election. The next vote is due in 2027. But Feijoo has already moved his party's congress forward by a year to this July, citing the need to be prepared for possible early polls. The opposition leader is yet to put forward a motion of censure against Sanchez's minority government. To do this, he would need the support of regional parties, who are wary of joining forces with the right-wing populist Vox party. Sunday's was the sixth anti-government protest that the PP has arranged since Feijoo became party leader in April 2022. Former prime ministers Mariano Rajoy and Jose Maria Aznar were also in attendance. A Spanish government spokeswoman mocked Sunday's turnout, noting on X that a veteran Spanish rock duo had recently pulled a bigger crowd in Madrid than the "apocalyptic Feijoo." Estopa mete más gente en el Metropolitano de Madrid que el apocalíptico Feijóo en la Plaza de España — Pilar Alegría (@Pilar_Alegria) June 8, 2025 Sanchez, meanwhile, has dismissed the investigations against members of his inner circle as part of a right-wing "smear campaign." The PP currently holds a slim lead over PSOE, according to recent polls, although Sanchez has the highest approval rating among all party leaders. During its time in office in the past decade, the PP was also accused of corruption, involving illegal party funding, abuse of office, bribery and cover-ups. Edited by: Darko Janjevic
DW
10 hours ago
- Politics
- DW
Spain: Tens of thousands demand new election at Madrid rally – DW – 06/08/2025
Spain's conservative Popular Party (PP) is protesting the left-wing government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. The current administration is implicated in several scandals, one of them involving Sanchez's wife. An opposition-led protest against government corruption in Spain drew tens of thousands of people on Sunday. Officials put the number of people at the "Mafia or Democracy" rally in Madrid at up to 50,000, while the city's right-wing mayor spoke of 100,000 people. Plaza de Espana, a large square in the center of the Spanish capital, was crowded with demonstrators, many waving red and yellow Spanish flags. Opposition accuses Sanchez of running 'mafia' government Mayor Jose Luis Martínez-Almeida told protesters that Spain's opposition People's Party (PP) wants to "drive out the mafia as quickly as possible and restore our democracy," in a reference to Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's left-wing government. Spain: Tourism boom worsens housing crisis To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Many of the protesters chanted, "Pedro Sanchez, resign!" in reaction to a leaked audio recording allegedly showing political activist Leire Diez, at the time member of the Socialist PSOE party, waging a smear campaign against a police unit. The police unit had investigated graft allegations against Sanchez's wife, brother and his former right-hand man. Diez has denied the allegations, insisting that she was conducting research for a book and was not working on behalf of Sanchez or PSOE. She has since quit the party. The Diez scandal is one of several graft investigations circling Sanchez and his allies. Others include alleged donations to lawmakers close to the PSOE linked to a tax fraud case. Officials put the number of attendees at the Madrid march between 50,000 and 100,000 Image: Alejandro Martínez Vélez/Europa Press/IMAGO PP's Feijoo demands early election Having accused the government of "mafia practices" over the affair, PP leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo told protesters Sunday that the PSOE had "stained everything — politics, state institutions, the separation of powers," before demanding a snap election. The next vote is due in 2027. But Feijoo has already moved his party's congress forward by a year to this July, citing the need to be prepared for possible early polls. The opposition leader is yet to put forward a motion of censure against Sanchez's minority government. To do this, he would need the support of regional parties, who are wary of joining forces with the right-wing populist Vox party. Sunday's was the sixth anti-government protest that the PP has arranged since Feijoo became party leader in April 2022. Former prime ministers Mariano Rajoy and Jose Maria Aznar were also in attendance. Sanchez says graft probes are a 'smear campaign' A Spanish government spokeswoman mocked Sunday's turnout, noting on X that a veteran Spanish rock duo had recently pulled a bigger crowd in Madrid than the "apocalyptic Feijoo." Sanchez, meanwhile, has dismissed the investigations against members of his inner circle as part of a right-wing "smear campaign." The PP currently holds a slim lead over PSOE, according to recent polls, although Sanchez has the highest approval rating among all party leaders. During its time in office in the past decade, the PP was also accused of corruption, involving illegal party funding, abuse of office, bribery and cover-ups. Edited by: Darko Janjevic
The Guardian
13 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Thousands protest in Madrid against government of prime minister Pedro Sánchez
Tens of thousands of people have gathered in central Madrid to protest against the government of Spain's socialist prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, and to demand an early general election as his party, his administration and his family continue to be beset by a succession of corruption allegations. Sunday's protest, called by the opposition conservative People's party (PP) under the slogan 'Mafia or democracy', attracted between 45,000 and 50,000 people, according to the central government's delegation to the region. Organisers, however, put the attendance at 100,000. Both Sánchez's government and his inner circle have faced a series of corruption allegations over the past year. But pressure on his Spanish Socialist Workers' party (PSOE) has increased over recent days after a former member of the party was accused of trying to wage a smear campaign against the Guardia Civil police unit investigating the prime minister's wife, Begoña Gómez, his brother, David Sánchez, and the former transport minister, José Luis Ábalos. Leire Díaz – who resigned from the PSOE after recordings were leaked in which she appeared to offer judicial leniency in return for compromising information on senior members of the unit – has denied working on behalf of the prime minister or the party, saying she was researching a book on corruption. As demonstrators congregated in the midday heat of the Plaza de España, carrying placards bearing messages such as 'Sánchez traitor' and 'Government resign', the PP's leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, renewed his call for a snap election. 'Spain needs a revolution of decency and freedom – and we will lead that revolution from the streets and at the ballot boxes,' he told the crowd. 'Mr Sánchez, stop hiding, stop lying and stop running. Spain knows only too well who you are and what you have done. Yield to democracy. Call an election: we want one now because no one voted for this, not even your supporters.' The prime minister has accused his political and media opponents of conducting a 'harassment and bullying operation' against him and his wife, arguing that the false allegations levelled at her are designed to bring about his 'personal and political collapse'. Sign up to Headlines Europe A digest of the morning's main headlines from the Europe edition emailed direct to you every week day after newsletter promotion Gómez is being investigated for alleged corruption and influence peddling after a complaint by the pressure group Manos Limpias (Clean Hands), a self-styled trade union with far-right links that has a long history of using the courts to pursue political targets. Manos Limpias has accused Gómez of using her influence as the wife of the prime minister to secure sponsors for a university master's degree course that she ran. Sánchez has described the case against his wife as baseless and 'an ugly fit-up driven by the far-right groups behind the complaint'. Meanwhile, David Sánchez is facing trial over allegations of influence peddling and other offences in a case that also began with accusations from Manos Limpias and other groups. He denies the charges. Sánchez's administration has also been facing questions since it emerged in February last year that an assistant to Ábalos, once a close ally and confidant of the prime minister, had been arrested on suspicion of taking payments to facilitate contracts for face masks during the coronavirus pandemic. But the PP, which was ousted from government seven years ago following a series of corruption scandals, is itself under scrutiny on several fronts, not least over its handling of the deadly floods last year in Valencia, one of the regions it governs. Isabel Díaz Ayuso, the populist PP president of the Madrid region – and one of the prime minister's most vocal critics – is also facing continuing questions over her government's Covid protocols after more than 7,200 people died in the region's care homes during the early stages of the pandemic. She has also been forced to defend her relationship with her partner, Alberto González Amador, after judges began investigating his business dealings. González Amador is under investigation for a variety of alleged offences and has been charged with two counts of tax fraud and one of document forgery in connection to fees he charged a company that imported face masks during the pandemic. Ayuso has said her partner has been targeted by 'all the powers of the state' purely because of his relationship with her, while a member of her administration recently said the 'presumption of innocence should be respected'.
