The Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) is going through one of its most delicate internal crises over the management of the so-called “Salazar case”, the scandal of alleged sexual harassment and abuse of power that implicates former Moncloa adviser Paco Salazar and his right-hand man, Antonio Hernández, both of whom, until just a few days ago, were part of the closest circle of trust of the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, who is currently surrounded by numerous corruption cases.
Who is Paco Salazar and what is he accused of
Francisco José “Paco” Salazar, a long-standing PSOE member from Seville, was mayor of Montellano and later a member of the Spanish Congress, as well as holding strategic posts alongside Pedro Sánchez in the party headquarters in Ferraz and at the Moncloa Palace.
In recent months, numerous female Socialist members and staff who were employed under his supervision have internally reported behaviors they characterize as sexual harassment and abuse of power: comments with sexual undertones, relentless invitations to private meetings beyond working hours, and proposals to let them stay at his residence, consistently within a framework of hierarchical dependence.
As a consequence of these grievances, Salazar was relieved of his duties within the party and no longer holds a role in the federal executive, in addition to losing his influential position in Moncloa. The incidents are under investigation following the PSOE’s internal anti-harassment procedures and might result in legal proceedings should the complainants choose to advance, yet for now, there is quiet.
The role of Antonio Hernández, the dismissed right-hand man
Antonio Hernández, until now director of the Political Coordination Department in Moncloa and a key figure in the Government’s political machinery, was considered Salazar’s right-hand man and his main support in day-to-day matters.
The women who reported Salazar also pointed to Hernández as an alleged “accomplice” and “cover-up” of the abuses, arguing that he was aware of the circumstances and failed to act to protect the victims, a claim he denies.
In the midst of the scandal, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez chose to advocate for his removal from both Moncloa and the organizational framework of the Andalusian PSOE, a decision that has been formalized by the Council of Ministers in recent days and has been seen as an effort to cauterize the crisis and eliminate any semblance of complicity with the behavior attributed to Salazar.
Critiques regarding the PSOE’s internal management and their belated reaction
Various press reports indicate that the PSOE took more than four months to formally contact the victims after the first complaints became known, which has generated strong internal backlash and severely damaged the party’s image. The functioning of the anti-harassment committee itself has been questioned for its slowness, lack of coordination and poor communication with the federal leadership, in a party that prides itself on its feminist orientation.
At the same time, critical voices from within socialism are calling for a far-reaching reform of internal protocols and organizational culture, to prevent what they describe as “protective environments for alleged aggressors” and situations of abandonment for women who come forward.
The stance of Pedro Sánchez’s Government
The Government’s spokesperson and Minister of Education, Pilar Alegría, has emphasized that the Executive responded with “speed and determination” once it was formally aware of the accusations, underscoring Salazar’s dismissal, his removal from the PSOE executive, and now, the termination of Antonio Hernández.
Alegría has publicly acknowledged that her recent lunch with Salazar —which took place when the complaints were already known— was a “mistake”, stressing that the focus of the debate must be on the victims and not on the political cost for the party.
Simultaneously, various reports suggest a potential legal challenge for the PSOE as an entity, hinging on the chance that the courts might evaluate if there was organizational accountability in managing the complaints. Some media outlets cite prosecutorial sources indicating the possibility of the party being scrutinized for an alleged organizational crime of sexual harassment, a situation that, at this stage, is merely a legal hypothesis under review and does not entail any formal charges.
Response from the opposition and political repercussions
The People’s Party (PP) has announced that it will use its majority in the Senate to call Paco Salazar to testify before the committee on the so-called “Koldo case”, taking advantage of the public relevance the former adviser has acquired. From the PP, Sánchez is accused of being the president “most harmful to women”, linking the Salazar case to other controversial episodes in the field of equality and victim protection.
The entire opposition has concentrated on the sequence of appointments, dismissals, and reassignments involving Salazar, along with the claim that two of his closest female associates have reportedly been transferred to public companies in recent years, which strengthens the narrative of a trust network surrounding the former adviser within the state apparatus.
A case that challenges the party’s protocols and credibility
The Salazar case, which now includes Antonio Hernández, has created a significant political and ethical divide within Pedro Sánchez’s PSOE, amidst a societal call for zero tolerance against sexual harassment and abuses of power in both the workplace and political spheres.
While internal proceedings and potential legal actions are still ongoing, the party encounters a dual challenge: on one side, demonstrating that its anti-harassment protocols function efficiently and prioritize victims; on the other, restoring the confidence of its electorate and public opinion, which is observing with apprehension the series of leaks, corrections, and dismissals related to the case.
In any event, both Paco Salazar and Antonio Hernández still retain, as of today, their right to the presumption of innocence before the courts, pending full clarification of the facts and the possible opening of criminal proceedings. The next steps taken by the PSOE and Pedro Sánchez’s Government will be decisive in determining the political, institutional and judicial scope of this scandal. But for the moment, despite the legal duty to do so, there has been no indication that the PSOE itself is filing any complaint with the authorities, as has already been the case with other corruption scandals surrounding the party.
