Spain’s Partido Popular has formally asked the National Court to charge the PSOE with illegal financing and other serious crimes. The move intensifies the political and legal battle just months before the country’s snap elections.
Spain’s political fight just got sharper. The Partido Popular (PP) has filed a formal request with the Audiencia Nacional, asking the court to charge the PSOE as a legal entity for a string of alleged crimes: illegal financing, bribery, embezzlement, influence peddling, and money laundering. This move lands as the country heads into a tense pre-election stretch. Pedro Sánchez’s government is already under the microscope. Early elections are set for November 29. Government sources say the decree to dissolve parliament and set the election date will appear in the official state bulletin. The campaign kicks off November 13. Postal voting runs from October 6 to November 19.
The PP’s complaint centers on the “cloacas de Ferraz” case. This is a wide-ranging probe into alleged criminal operations run from PSOE headquarters on Madrid’s Calle Ferraz. In its submission, the PP singles out party leaders, especially Santos Cerdán, who was then secretary of Organization. The PP accuses them of running a “criminal organization” and using the party’s resources to protect both the government and the PSOE from ongoing court investigations. The timing is no accident. The complaint comes right after Sánchez’s five-day public reflection. The PP filed as a popular prosecution. The public prosecutor’s office has not made a similar move, according to several Spanish media outlets.
The PP filed its request to investigate the PSOE as a legal entity on October 6, the very first day of the official election period.
Speculation is swirling that the snap election could slow or freeze court action against the PSOE. The PP wants the opposite. Its complaint, sent to Judge Santiago Pedraz, lays out what it calls a long list of criminal acts. The PP points to Ana María Fuentes Pacheco, the PSOE’s current manager, as a key player. The party claims payments went to people like Leire Díez, Jacobo Teijelo, and Ismael Oliver, all allegedly tied to the network. The PP cites Unidad Central Operativa (UCO) reports that suggest PSOE funds, staff, and logistics were used to help the network. Some payments, the PP says, were signed off or organized by Santos Cerdán.
One of the PP’s most serious claims is that the PSOE funded “Crónica Libre,” a media outlet the PP calls central to the operation, using public money disguised as campaign expenses. The PP says Ion Antolín, then communications director, approved these payments. The money allegedly moved through consultancies like Zaño, run by Gaspar Zarrías, who is also under investigation. But independent publications point out there is no court confirmation that PSOE funded Crónica Libre with public money or that Cerdán led a criminal group. These are still allegations under review.
The legal probe keeps growing. The Audiencia Nacional has ordered the PSOE to hand over records of all donations from 2017 to 2024. This is part of a look into possible illegal party financing. Judge Ismael Moreno, working on a separate part of the case, has asked the Tribunal de Cuentas for audited donation data for the Sánchez-led party. The goal is to cross-check information about alleged “pitufeo”—secret party funding—now under sealed investigation. Spanish press reports say the case focuses on former PSOE activist Leire Díez and possible use of party resources to pressure or discredit people involved in other probes. The court has not recognized a "PSOE case" as such.
The ongoing investigation includes scrutiny of payments and invoices that may have been routed through intermediary companies and individuals using fictitious accounts. The degree of responsibility of those involved, including Santos Cerdán and PSOE manager Ana María Fuentes, is yet to be determined by the court.
The court is also looking at a €15 million fake contract submitted by businessman Víctor de Aldama. This document is now a key part of Judge Moreno’s confidential review of the party’s accounts.
Despite the PP’s push and the evidence piling up, sources from the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office, cited by EL MUNDO, say no party will be formally investigated as a legal entity during the pre-campaign or campaign. That means any charges against the PSOE will likely wait until after the election. The opposition has noticed. Independent reports say the Audiencia Nacional will keep investigating, but a decision on whether to formally investigate the PSOE as a legal entity may only come after voters go to the polls.
This is not the first time Spain’s main parties have fought over corruption and party money. As reported earlier, the PP has been working to get back into power. Its legal attack on the PSOE is a clear sign it wants to keep the government on the defensive.
Politics and the courts are now tightly linked. The PP’s aggressive tactics force the PSOE to answer tough questions in public, even if court schedules may protect the party for now. For voters, the message is clear. In Spain, the courtroom and the ballot box are never far apart. The next few months will test both the country’s institutions and the leaders who want to run them.
