Pedro Sanchez, Europe’s longest-serving left-wing leader (in power since 2018), has gained international prominence thanks to his stance against US President Donald Trump on issues such as Iran and immigration. However, the question of who will be in power in Spain until the end of his term in 2027 became imperative this week.
The Spanish prime minister is facing a political storm: , by his closest aides, a former number 2 of the Socialist Party, and a former minister of transport, was sentenced on Monday, to 24 years in prison, for participation in a criminal organization, corruption, embezzlement of public funds and exercising illegal influence, amid the coronavirus pandemic. Sanchez’s wife, , is also accused of corruption and had her passport confiscated because she was suspected of absconding. In addition, new charges of corruption also weigh on the former Prime Minister of the Socialists, Jose Luis Zapatero (2004-2011).
Sanchez is a measure of political survival
Sanchez called for and addressed parliament on Wednesday to defend his actions, as the centre-right opposition is pushing for early elections. But Sanchez is renowned for his ability to survive politically. Some analysts argue that he will do it again, turning the prosecution against his wife into a weapon in his favor.
“There is no widespread corruption,” Sanchez said, addressing lawmakers. “We are not infallible, but the moral imperative of the Left is to act decisively and lead by example,” he added. These statements of his referred to corresponding ones, in July 2025, when he had appeared again, before the parliament, under similar circumstances, after the involvement of Santos Terdan, another high-ranking figure of the Spanish Socialists, suspected of illegal procurement in public contracts. At the time, Sanchez had presented a plan to fight corruption, but it remained inactive.
Group fire from the center-right opposition
The leader of the center-right Popular Party, Alberto Nunez Feijo, the head of the opposition, accused Sanchez of a “complete lack of morality”, calling him the “political link of corruption”. “We should overthrow this government with a motion of impeachment,” he said. However, the People’s Party does not have the required parliamentary support to submit a motion of censure, which must be approved by 176 MPs, out of a total of 350, in the parliament. This is the only institutional mechanism that can lead to the overthrow of a prime minister in Spain.
In exactly the same way, in 2018, Sanchez had removed from power his conservative predecessor and former leader of the People’s Party, Mariano Rajoy, citing the corruption scandals that then plagued the People’s Party.
Sanchez’s government partners criticize him, but do not withdraw support for the government
Sanchez’s government partners, who could theoretically withdraw their confidence, are refusing to join forces with the conservatives, who have allied with the far-right Vox party, in several regions, despite growing criticism of the socialist government. This applies both to the radical left party Sumar, several members of which are in the government, and to the Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) and the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV).
Catalan proposal for a “Starmer-style” solution
French newspaper Le Monde noted that the Catalan nationalist Junts (“Together”) party, which quit the governing coalition in October 2025, proposed a “Starmer-style solution,” referring to the British Labor prime minister, who was forced to resign on Monday under pressure from his own party. They asked Sanchez “to step aside and let Parliament appoint someone capable of keeping his commitments.”
Judicial developments continue
Despite the impasse in parliament, judicial developments continue. Hours after Wednesday’s parliamentary session, the Spanish prime minister’s wife surrendered her passport to a Madrid judge who accuses her of abusing her position for personal gain in the context of her activities at Madrid’s Complutense University. The judge cited the risk of Gometh escaping and assessed that the police officers responsible for her security “could, either on their own initiative or on the orders of their superiors, facilitate her escape”. His statements provoked strong reactions and led to the initiation of disciplinary proceedings by the competent judicial oversight body.
Senior government officials accuse the judge of bias, while commentators say the judge, who turns 72 in September – the mandatory retirement age – is seeking to wage the last political “crusade” of his career.
The case of Sanchez’s wife an unexpected weapon in his favor
On the face of it, the impeachment of his wife appears to be a serious blow to Sanchez, but analysts believe that the Spanish prime minister, known for his ability to survive politically, is trying to turn the case in his favor. His government claims it is a targeted attack by an obsessive judge who, in his ruling, compared the Sanchez government to “authoritarian regimes”. By portraying the prime minister’s family as the victim of a smear campaign, the Spanish government is seeking to cloud the waters around all the court cases weighing on it, analysts in The New York Times newspaper point out.
If this strategy works, it may limit the damage to the Spanish government’s image and other corruption cases. Senior government officials argue that the case against Sanchez’s wife was an “own goal” by his political opponents. Like his clashes with Trump, his wife’s trial, they point out, gives Sanchez an argument around which he can rally unenthusiastic leftist voters.
The Spanish do not trust either the politicians or the Judiciary – Polls
However, the fact remains that Gomet’s case, which has been under judicial investigation since 2024, when a conservative anti-corruption organization filed a complaint against her, together with the other corruption cases, have sharpened social and political confrontations and undermined the confidence of Spaniards in politicians and in Justice.
According to most June polls, the People’s Party maintains a lead over the Socialists from four (32.4% to 27.7%) to five and a half points (32% to 25.6%).
