(CN) — Spain's polarized politics turned even uglier Thursday after Socialist Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he may resign in the face of what he described as a relentless right-wing mudslinging campaign against him and his wife.
His surprise announcement late Wednesday came shortly after news reports said a Madrid court had opened a probe into influence peddling and corruption accusations against his wife, Begoña Gómez.
Gómez has become the focus of investigations by right-wing news outlets examining her ties with businesses that received public funds, including Air Europa, a Spanish airline that got a 475 million euro ($509 million) bailout during the Coronavirus pandemic.
The criminal probe was sparked by a complaint filed by Manos Limpias ("Clean Hands"), an organization that presents itself as anti-corruption fighters. But the group is linked to far-right causes and has become notorious for filing politically motivated lawsuits. In bringing its suit against Gómez, it relied on a peculiar Spanish legal procedure that allows people and organizations to lodge criminal complaints even when they are not directly harmed.
In a furious letter posted on social media, Sánchez called the charges “scandalous in appearance” but baseless. Still, he said this latest attack left him pondering whether he wanted to stay on as prime minister. He said he would withdraw from public events and announce what he will do next on Monday.
“At this point, the question I legitimately ask myself is, is all this worth it? Sincerely I don't know,” he said. “This attack is unprecedented, it is so serious and so gross that I need to stop and reflect with my wife.”
He accused the Popular Party and Vox, his center-right and far-right opponents, of being “collaborators with a far-right digital galaxy and the Manos Limpias organization” in an attack on his wife. He accused the right wing of conducting a relentless campaign against him to derail his government's “progressive political” agenda.
“It is an operation of harassment and demolition by land, sea and air to try and weaken me politically and personally by attacking my wife,” Sánchez said.
Alberto Núñez Feijóo, the leader of the Popular Party, blasted Sánchez for taking time off to consider his future.
“A responsible president cannot subject a country to international embarrassment,” he said, as reported by Spanish media.
In a statement, Feijóo doubted Sánchez intended to step down and instead wanted to “mobilize his voter base” by presenting himself as a “victim.”
Santiago Abascal, the Vox leader, echoed Feijóo's statements and said Sánchez had long deserved to be “sitting on a bench” to face criminal charges.
Sánchez reportedly did not consult with aides and allies before posting the letter, leaving pundits uncertain about what he intended to do. Besides resigning, Sánchez could ask for a vote of confidence in parliament or even call new elections.
This dramatic turn of events underscored the toxic political atmosphere hanging over Spain and the animosity Sánchez inspires among his foes on the right, who see him dismantling Spain's traditional order.
Sánchez, the leader of the center-left Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, is Spain's first openly atheist prime minister. He has enraged conservatives by forming coalition governments with far-left progressive parties and passing leftist economic and social policies, such as raising the minimum wage and strengthening abortion and transgender rights.
He's also angered conservatives by taking a soft approach toward Catalonia's drive toward independence.
For example, in 2021, he pardoned Catalan separatists convicted of leading an illegal independence referendum in 2017.
The prime minister caused even more anger after he backed an amnesty bill for Catalan separatists facing prosecution, most prominently self-exiled former Catalan President Carles Puigdemont. Sánchez was forced into supporting amnesty after inconclusive elections last July left him relying on the support of small Catalan parties to form a minority government.
He's also stoked animosity among Spanish conservatives, such as the supporters of Vox, by removing the remains of Spanish dictator Francisco Franco from a massive mausoleum outside Madrid.
Courthouse News reporter Cain Burdeau is based in the European Union.
Follow @cainburdeau
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