Tens of thousands of demonstrators packed into Madrid’s Plaza de España on Sunday, calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and an immediate general election amid a growing wave of corruption scandals engulfing his government, party, and family.
Organised by the opposition conservative People’s Party (PP), the protest took place under the charged slogan “Mafia or Democracy,” drawing between 45,000 and 50,000 people, according to official estimates. Organisers, however, claimed attendance topped 100,000.
Pedro Sánchez’s Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) has been rocked by a cascade of corruption accusations in recent months. The latest controversy surrounds Leire Díaz, a former party member, who resigned after leaked recordings suggested she offered judicial leniency in exchange for damaging information on police officers investigating key figures linked to the prime minister. Díaz has denied acting on behalf of the party or Sánchez, stating she was conducting research for a book on corruption.
The probe includes scrutiny of Sánchez’s wife, Begoña Gómez, who is under investigation for alleged corruption and influence peddling. The case stems from a complaint by far-right-linked group Manos Limpias, which alleges she used her status to benefit a university program she ran. Sánchez has dismissed the claims as “baseless” and politically motivated.
The prime minister’s brother, David Sánchez, is also facing trial over alleged influence peddling, while former transport minister José Luis Ábalos remains under suspicion after his assistant was arrested last year for allegedly profiting from face mask contracts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As protesters waved placards reading “Sánchez Traitor” and “Government Resign,” PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo seized the moment to ramp up pressure on the prime minister.
“Spain needs a revolution of decency and freedom,” Feijóo told the crowd. “Mr. Sánchez, stop hiding, stop lying, and stop running. Yield to democracy. Call an election.”
Sánchez reacts
Sánchez, however, has accused opposition forces and right-wing media of orchestrating a targeted campaign to destroy him politically and personally, calling it a “harassment and bullying operation” aimed particularly at his wife.
While the PSOE faces mounting criticism, the PP has not escaped scrutiny. The party is still shadowed by past corruption scandals and is currently facing criticism over its handling of deadly floods in Valencia, a region under its governance.
Madrid’s populist regional president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, one of Sánchez’s fiercest critics, has also come under fire. Her partner, Alberto González Amador, is being investigated for tax fraud and forgery linked to pandemic-era contracts. Ayuso has claimed the investigation is a political witch hunt due to her relationship with him.
In response to the protest, government officials sought to downplay its impact. Digital transformation minister Óscar López said the rally was “a distraction from Feijóo’s weak leadership and Ayuso’s scandals,” while transport minister Óscar Puente posted aerial images showing the plaza was not at full capacity.
“They’re nervous,” López wrote on X. “They filled the Plaza de España with insults, not with people … While they sling mud, we move forward.”
