Spain's 15th legislature ends amid courts and corruption scandals

Pedro Sánchez set a date for elections, concluding a legislature heavily shaped by tensions between the government and the courts. The 2023 investiture relied on an amnesty for convicted Catalan separatists, prompting a backlash from conservative judges and a series of rulings that saw the Supreme Court reject a pardon for malversation while the Constitutional Court later approved the amnesty. Corruption scandals have swirled around the PSOE, including the “case Koldo” involving alleged mask-contract bribes that led to arrests of businessman Víctor de Aldama and adviser Koldo García, and a separate probe into Santos Cerdán’s alleged role in public-works fraud.

The president’s spouse Begoña Gómez faces a jury trial over alleged influence-peddling, and his brother David Sánchez was sentenced for administrative fraud, a verdict now under appeal. Former prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero was also charged in the Plus Ultra case, with investigators finding luxury jewelry worth €1.3 million. These legal battles have intertwined with political negotiations, underscoring the judiciary’s central role in Spain’s current political landscape.