PSOE and PP easily passed their agreement on Tuesday in the last session of the season in Congress to renew the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ), the governing body for judges; but no one showed any satisfaction with the agreement during the debate. The PSOE, the leading party in the government, emphasized their “disappointment” at the time wasted in reaching the agreement, stating that it was “six years late due to the PP’s excuses.” Progressive allies of the government, including Sumar, who participates in the coalition, lamented that the socialists had chosen to reach a consensus with the PP, accusing them of benefiting from the deadlock and the alleged judicial persecution against their political opponents. The PP went even further, with their Secretary General, Cuca Gamarra, highlighting the “importance” of the day because, with this agreement, “the end of Pedro Sánchez is closer” and accusing the president of being “a predator of the rule of law”. The ten candidates (four jurists and six judges or magistrates) were elected with 284 votes in favor. The agreement to renew the General Council of the Judiciary, and to change the status of the Public Prosecutor’s Office to prevent revolving doors from political positions, passed without much excitement during the debates and approval in the plenary session of Congress. There was no enthusiasm during the debate, with the 256 seats held by the PSOE and PP being enough to ensure the vote passed, even with the 27 votes from Sumar, but there were no interventions that refrained from attacking the final solution found, which was seen as a lesser evil by its promoters, the two main parties in the Chamber.
Parties like ERC, EH Bildu, and BNG announced that they would not participate in the vote and stated, in a joint statement, that the pact between PP and PSOE “perpetuates the reactionary structures and dynamics of the 1978 regime.” The PNV also left the chamber and will not vote for the election of the judges. The first to criticize the agreement was the Secretary General of Podemos, Ione Belarra, who warned the PSOE that they would “regret” negotiating the distribution of Judicial Power with the PP, as the “judicial right has taken the president’s wife hostage,” referring to the actions of Judge Juan Carlos Peinado against Begoña Gómez. Belarra requested that the socialists rectify and break the agreement, which, in her opinion, perpetuates the “impunity” of the persecution of a series of judges against political rivals. The PNV’s spokesperson, Mikel Legarda, also expressed rejection for not being consulted and for maintaining, with that agreement by the PSOE and PP, the distribution of ideologically affiliated individuals. Similar criticisms were echoed by the spokesperson for Junts and ERC.
Gerardo Pisarello, spokesperson for Sumar and a member of the Chamber’s Mesa, launched various criticisms against the agreement with the PP, both judicial and otherwise, compared to the alliances that he would have preferred with the progressive majority of the legislature. This parliamentarian also launched harsh attacks against the judicial right, José María Aznar, FAES, Minister of the Interior Fernando Grande-Marlaska, the “thieving” Bourbons, the 1936 coup d’état, and the Francoist military regime. In this atmosphere, the spokesperson for Vox, Javier Ortega, criticized the consummation of the “Pepesoe” camaraderie. Vox believes that the agreed upon renewal of the CGPJ is “indecent and shameful,” especially if it requires “mediation from the EU like peasants.”
The PSOE delegate tasked with defending the alleged virtues of the pact, Francisco Aranda, tried to overlook the thornier aspects of the ongoing negotiations with the PP and focused on lamenting that the party had made so many excuses to delay the resolution, as the 20 members of the CGPJ to be renewed have been out of office since 2018. Aranda stressed his “disappointment at the wasted time” and the “loss of legitimacy and degradation” of the CGPJ. The final word went to the number two of the PP, Cuca Gamarra, who negotiated the details of the pact with the Minister of Justice, Félix Bolaños. Her presentation did not seem like an agreement at all, starting by stating that it was an “important day for democracy.” However, she followed with a barrage of reproaches, complaints, and accusations, overshadowing any virtues of what would be voted on that afternoon. The popular spokesperson claimed credit for the agreement, stating that it would be “the first step in ending 40 years of interference in the Judiciary.” Gamarra admitted that this “starting point, not the end,” represents a “vote of no confidence in the policy of walls and blocks” attributed to the Government of Pedro Sánchez. She directed all her attacks on the Prime Minister, with a slight rebuke to Vox, their former partner in several regions. Gamarra highlighted that the pact “does not eliminate the role of Parliament, it just limits it, but does eliminate the abuses of this Government.” She accused the Sánchez government of having “revolving doors” and concluded by labelling him as a “predator of the rule of law,” stating that the agreement reached by her party had “protected Spain from becoming a failed state” and allowing for a responsible and alternative opposition that is “moderate and centrist.” She ended by saying, “With the approval of this law, the end of Sánchez is closer than ever.”
