Santiago Abascal is demanding guarantees that jurors in Begoña Gómez's trial will not face pressure or intimidation. Vox says the PSOE is adding political pressure to an already sensitive case.
Santiago Abascal is demanding guarantees that the jurors in Begoña Gómez's trial will not be pressured or intimidated. The Vox leader directed his demand at the PSOE. He also raised the possibility that jurors could be photographed or targeted.
The case will put Gómez, the wife of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, before a popular jury. That has added a new political fight to the court proceedings.
On September 21, 2026, Judge Juan Carlos Peinado sent Gómez to trial over alleged malversation and influence peddling. The case will be decided through a jury proceeding rather than solely by professional judges. Vox has made that point central to its criticism of the government camp.
The jury selection will require 11 citizens, chosen through Spain’s Oficina del Jurado. The process has not yet reached the stage of selecting the jurors.
Abascal's accusation goes beyond the courtroom. He linked his warning to what he described as an alleged operation against Beatriz Biedma, the judge who investigated the case involving Sánchez's brother, David Sánchez.
Vox says pressure was directed at Biedma. The party also says it will file a complaint against Leire Díez and others allegedly involved in that operation.
Those claims are political allegations made by Vox. They are not established findings in the material available for this report.
Pepa Rodríguez de Millán widened the attack at a press conference in Congress. The Vox parliamentary spokesperson said the PSOE introduced the Law of the Jury. She argued that Sánchez and Gómez should not complain about judicial action if they had avoided the conduct under investigation.
Rodríguez de Millán also claimed that Gómez had used her position for certain business activities. She treated the jury's composition as less important than the alleged conduct itself.
The case has been under judicial examination since 2024. According to RTVE’s legal sources, the trial itself may not begin until the end of 2027, so the decision to send Gómez to trial does not mean that hearings will start immediately.
That argument turns the trial into a wider dispute over judicial scrutiny. Science Minister Diana Morant brought the PSOE's position into the exchange when she questioned the impartiality of the proceedings.
Vox rejected those concerns. The party said responsibility lies with the people facing investigation.
The political dispute is also tied to the case involving David Sánchez. He was convicted of administrative prevarication over his hiring by the Provincial Council of Badajoz. Vox says the hiring was allegedly orchestrated by Leire Díez, whom the source describes as the PSOE's so-called fixer.
Vox's decision to pursue legal action against Díez gives the dispute a separate judicial route. It also keeps the matter alive in parliament.
The chain of accusations has already been covered in earlier reporting on claims of pressure connected with the investigation into Sánchez's brother. That episode is now part of the political language around the Gómez trial, even though the cases involve different proceedings.
Rodríguez de Millán also demanded explanations from former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero over jewellery found in his office and valued at more than one million euros. She called for proof of its origin. She warned that the law would be applied if no explanation was provided.
The immediate issue is narrower and more serious than the surrounding rhetoric. A popular jury must be able to perform its legal role without pressure or intimidation.
Abascal has raised that concern as a political accusation against the PSOE. Vox has offered no established finding in the source showing that jurors have been threatened.
The trial, the allegations against Gómez and the separate claims involving Biedma should be kept distinct. Treating political assertions as proven facts would weaken the judicial safeguards that Vox says it wants protected.
According to reports from RTVE and other Spanish media, the proceedings will take place through the Audiencia Provincial de Madrid and the Tribunal del Jurado. Gómez is expected to face trial on the two principal charges that remained after the case materials were reviewed. Her aide Cristina Álvarez is also included in relation to the alleged malversation episode.
