Robles moves into second place

The Socialist Party (PSOE) confirmed on Wednesday, 14 October, that Defence Minister Margarita Robles will be the number two on its Madrid list for the 29 November general election, behind Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who heads the list. Socialist sources defended the choice as carrying high symbolic weight. In 2023 the same slot was held by Teresa Ribera, now vice-president of the European Commission, while Robles stood fourth. Speaking in Brussels on Thursday, 15 October, as he arrived at the European Council, Sánchez described a long working relationship and a close personal bond.

“Margarita has been there in the difficult moments, in every area, from the institutional and political point of view as well as the personal one.”

Robles had also defended earlier warnings from the CNI intelligence service during the Ceuta crisis, while Moncloa said it had received no prior information. Sánchez has framed her role as one of loyalty over more than a decade, first as his parliamentary spokeswoman when he led the opposition.

Eleven ministers on the lists

Eleven members of Sánchez's government appear in leading positions across the PSOE's lists, according to provincial committees that met on Wednesday. Félix Bolaños repeats as number three in Madrid, while Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska moves to fifth there after heading the Cádiz list in 2023. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares will lead the Cádiz list, a slot the party hopes will deliver a better result because of his role in the EU-UK agreement that ended the fence and border checks at Gibraltar. Industry Minister Jordi Heréu heads the PSC list in Barcelona, and government spokeswoman Elma Saiz leads the list in Navarra. Bolaños said of his own placement, 'It is an honour for me', and argued that the Madrid list aims to mobilise progressive voters.

The PSOE did not include Francisco Martín, the government delegate in the Madrid region, on its Congress or Senate lists. Two socialist sources told EL PAÍS the decision surprised the party, since Martín had been among the most proposed candidates by local branches. Without a seat in Congress he loses the potential protection of parliamentary immunity at a time when Vox has announced a complaint against him over the Sol encampment, and the PP is studying legal action too.

Opposition attacks over Ceuta

Cayetana Álvarez de Toledo, deputy spokesperson of the Popular Group in Congress, said in a Telecinco interview that Sánchez had privately called Robles a 'pájara' and had bought her silence by giving her the second place. She accused both Sánchez and Robles of concealing from Spaniards that Moroccan warships had entered Ceuta's waters during the crisis, coinciding with the land incursion into the city. She said the government had given 'three versions' of events within hours, and she demanded that Sánchez appear before the Diputación Permanente to explain why he misled Spaniards.

Voting rights and the grandchildren law

The Supreme Court announced on Monday, 12 October, a decision to suspend the voting rights of naturalised citizens under the so-called 'grandchildren law'. Bolaños said the order would be published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) on Thursday, 15 October at 7.45, after which affected people will have five days to appeal. He said the delay came because the order was only notified through the State Attorney's office on Wednesday morning. Bolaños also argued that a different composition of the court could have produced a different ruling, and said keeping these interim measures on articles of the Democratic Memory Law is contrary to the Constitution.

What comes next

The PSOE's federal executive commission and lists commission must ratify the slates on Saturday, 17 October. Sánchez said he aims for a broader majority in Congress and in the Senate, and he has left open joint lists with parties to the left of the Socialists for the upper house.