Corruption scandal deepens around Spanish Socialists as Madrid HQ raided

Spanish anti-corruption police raided the headquarters of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's Socialist Party in Madrid on Wednesday. The scandal widened last week when former PM José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero was charged with corruption.

Spanish anti-corruption investigators raided the Madrid headquarters of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's Socialist Party on Wednesday, marking a dramatic escalation in a widening corruption scandal surrounding the ruling party.

The search was carried out by Spain's specialist anti-corruption police unit and targeted the party's central offices in the capital. Authorities have not yet disclosed which specific documents or materials were seized during the operation.

The raid comes just days after José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, a former Spanish prime minister and close political ally of Sánchez, was formally charged with corruption. Zapatero led Spain from 2004 to 2011 as head of the same Socialist Party now under scrutiny.

The back-to-back developments represent a significant blow to Sánchez's government, which has faced mounting pressure from opposition parties demanding accountability. The unfolding scandal risks undermining public trust in the ruling Socialists ahead of any future electoral contests.