Politics Harassment affair shakes left-wing government in Spain

Spain's left-wing government has been rocked by a harassment scandal. Several women have accused Iñigo Errejón, spokesperson for the junior coalition partner Sumar, of sexual assault.

Errejón resigned from all party offices as well as his parliamentary seat and also announced his retirement from politics. The 40-year-old had admitted to "unacceptable" behavior, the party announced. The state TV station RTVE spoke of a "political bombshell".

Opposition calls for further resignations

Politicians from the conservative People's Party (PP) used the affair to attack the entire government of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez: The affair proves that the government's feminist policy is "hypocritical" and a "farce". The PP spokesperson in the Senate, Alicia García, accused Sumar and Sánchez's Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) of having known about Errejón's behavior for some time and having agreed a "pact of silence". PP spokesman Miguel Tellado called for his resignation.

The government, which has also been confronted with allegations of corruption, has been tarnished, analyzed RTVE. Sánchez reiterated on X that his government was working "for a feminist Spain". "I condemn all those who attack this project of equality. All my support for the women who suffer harassment and abuse", he emphasized.

Well-known actress among alleged victims

The scandal became public on Thursday following a revelation by a journalist and quickly escalated with more and more accusations. One of the alleged victims is the well-known Spanish actress and TV presenter Elisa Mouiláa, who accused Errejón on X and also filed a complaint.

Errejón was seen as a beacon of hope for the left in Spain. He is the last founding member of Podemos, which began as a protest movement in 2011 in the midst of the euro crisis and became a party in 2014, to leave the political stage.

SDA