Simón said the prime minister has “a personal interest in wanting to finish the term and has no interest in cutting it short, especially because of acts of corruption to which he isn’t connected,” Simón said.
Moreover, he added, Sánchez knows that if evidence implicating him were to surface, he’d be better placed to dispute it as prime minister than as leader of the opposition.
“The party knows that this could end badly and could tarnish its brand for the next decade,” he said. “But they don’t have the strength to overthrow him, even when he’s injured, even when he’s mortally wounded. Sánchez is the master of his party and if he wants to remain in office, he will.”
Simón added that while the center-right opposition may be demanding the prime minister resign or call snap elections, it is actually delighted that Sánchez is keen to remain in power.
“The People’s Party is in no rush to see him go,” he said. “These scandals are wearing down the Socialists, and the longer this goes on, the more the parties that support the government end up being tainted in the eyes of the voters.”
That view was confirmed by the People’s Party itself.
“A no-confidence vote would be a breath of fresh air” for the prime minister, said People’s Party spokesperson Borja Sémper.
“He’s chosen a slow, agonizing demise,” he added. “One that will be all the more painful in the end.”