García-Page criticizes government.
García-Page: Government and Sánchez struggle to admit their burden amid 120 party accusations.
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Emiliano García-Page, the Socialist president of Castilla-La Mancha, launched a public attack on his own party leader at a Federal Committee meeting on June 27. "I understand that it is hard for the Government and Sánchez to assume they are a burden," he said, according to El Periódico de Aragón. He then asked the room: "The party has more than 120 indicted members. Are we not responsible for anything?"
The outburst came after a brutal month for the ruling PSOE. A former prime minister was indicted, the party's headquarters was raided, and a former minister was sentenced to 24 years in prison. Despite the pressure, Pedro Sánchez told critics to "abandon all hope" of early elections, insisting the government will run until 2027, Levante-EMV reported.
A Cascade of Corruption Cases Hits PSOE in June
Three major judicial blows landed on the PSOE within weeks. On June 5, Civil Guard agents raided the party's federal headquarters in Madrid's Ferraz street as part of the "Leire Díez Case." Investigators say a network allegedly operated from inside the building to pressure judges involved in the amnesty process, according to El Correo Gallego.
On June 24, former minister José Luis Ábalos was sentenced to 24 years in prison for his role in the so-called Koldo corruption scheme, Diario Córdoba reported. Days earlier, the Audiencia Nacional — Spain's High Court — formally named former Prime Minister José Luis Zapatero as a suspect in a case involving a €53 million airline bailout linked to Venezuelan funds. It was the first time in Spanish democratic history a former head of government had been indicted.
García-Page and Andrés Break Ranks at Federal Meeting
García-Page was not alone. Miriam Andrés, mayor of Palencia, also spoke out during the June 27 Federal Committee. She said she could not understand why colleagues refused to see that "the emperor has no clothes," according to La Opinión de Zamora. Both leaders represent a small but vocal dissident wing inside a party that largely closed ranks around Sánchez.
The "120 imputados" figure cited by García-Page refers to party members, local officials, and former ministers currently under investigation across the Koldo, Leire, and Plus Ultra cases combined, Información reported. García-Page called the prospect of the PSOE being indicted as a legal entity — a possible outcome in the Leire Díez case — "terrifying."
Sánchez Holds Firm as Poll Numbers Collapse
Despite the turmoil, Sánchez is not budging. His message to internal critics was blunt: elections will not happen before 2027. The PSOE's vote estimate has dropped to 31.3%, a fall of 5 points in a single month following the Zapatero indictment, according to the June 2026 CIS barometer. A separate SocioMétrica poll found that 74.4% of Spaniards want Sánchez to call elections now, El Periódico Mediterráneo reported.
The opposition is capitalizing fast. PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo described the PSOE cycle as "devastated." Vox's Santiago Abascal called it the "encyclopedia of corruption," listing cases from Ábalos to Zapatero. Current polling suggests a PP-Vox coalition could win more than 200 seats if elections were held today, La Opinión de A Coruña noted.
A Party Divided Between Resistance and Reckoning
The pro-government wing frames the judicial cases as a right-wing "offensive" against a legitimate government. Sánchez argues the accused individuals acted alone, not as part of a systemic party problem. But critics inside and outside the PSOE say that argument is harder to make with 120-plus members under investigation, El Día reported.
Adding more pressure, former PSOE Organization Secretary Santos Cerdán — who spent four months in provisional prison — released a book this week titled "La Caída" (The Fall). It is being read as a veiled threat, suggesting he will not face justice alone, El Periódico de Extremadura reported. Internal reform groups like "Reactiva PSOE" are now calling for immediate primaries and "absolute regeneration" of the party leadership.
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