2016 PSOE crisis

Ever since Sánchez's election as Secretary-General—helped by Díaz's own manoeuvres to hold off Eduardo Madina—both leaders had developed an increasing distrust and rivalry between the two of them for the party's leadership and political strategy.

However, Sánchez's own political aspirations, coupled with his perceived failure to cope successfully with the newly-founded Podemos party's growth in opinion polls, as well as personal differences,[20] caused both leaders to grow increasingly distrustful of each other.

Podemos and its allies together garnered 69 seats and 20.7%, fairly close to PSOE and threatening the party's hegemony as the main leftist political force in Spain.

Then-acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and C's leader Albert Rivera both suggested a grand coalition between their parties and PSOE, but this proposal met with opposition from Sánchez, who preferred to study alternative pacts.

[41] On 1 February, leaked recordings from the party's federal committee held two days earlier revealed Susana Díaz openly questioning Pedro Sánchez's performance throughout the month after the general election.

[48][49] The poor PSOE showing in both Galicia and the Basque Country, being overtaken by Podemos-led alliances and polling record low results,[50] prompted dissenters—led by Susana Díaz—to call for Sánchez's immediate resignation on 26 September.

[51][52] Sánchez refused to step down and announced his plan to hold a party primary election on 23 October, daring his critics to challenge him in a back-me-or-sack-me vote.

[53] This move further enraged his opponents, who considered staging a revolt in the federal committee scheduled for 1 October, seeking to topple Sánchez and cancel his plan to hold an early party congress.

[61] Sánchez's statements during an interview held earlier in the day claiming González to be "on the [Rajoy's investiture] abstention side" and rhetorically asking "I'd like to know on which side Susana Díaz is", coupled with an earlier warning that he would not step down even if 1 October federal committee voted down his plans for a party congress in late 2016, were said to be the straw that broke the camel's back for open revolution to unfold within the party.

[64][65] Upon learning of this, Pedro Sánchez went further and dared them to do so if they "did not feel committed" to his project,[66] prompting dissenters to act ahead of schedule and resulting in 17 executive members, the required majority, resigning from their posts on 28 September.

[83] Party members found themselves evenly split between those that supported him and were "deeply embarrassed" by the "show" being staged by his opponents, and those that demanded Sánchez's removal and the establishment of a caretaker committee to replace him in the interim.

[93] Attempts from both sides to reach some sort of compromise to prevent all out war from raging at the next day's federal committee failed, with the two factions' positions seemingly irreconcilable in the short term.

They also deemed that party rules did not provide for the "interim" status that Sánchez's executive had conferred upon itself, with any decision adopted in such circumstances being "completely without any statutory validity and null and void".

[115][116] It was implied that the events of this day may help pave the way for the formation of a new government and put an end to nine months of political deadlock, as the rebels considered an abstention in a potential forthcoming vote on Rajoy's investiture.

[119][120] Nonetheless, PP leaders were said to be "incredulous" and "concerned" with "all that was happening within PSOE", worried at the prospect of a party fracture that would leave Podemos as the dominant leftist force in Spanish politics.

[122] In contrast, Podemos leaders openly accused PSOE rebels of committing "fraud" by attempting to remove Sánchez through "undemocratic means", with the ultimate goal of ending the deadlock by helping Rajoy to get re-elected.

[128] Nonetheless, party members who gathered outside PSOE's headquarters in Madrid shouted at critics attending the meeting by calling them "traitors" and "coup plotters", as chants against Susana Díaz and in support of Pedro Sánchez were heard.

[136] Shortly after Pedro Sánchez had been sacked as party leader by the federal committee, while its members were appointing a caretaker team to replace him in the interim, the PSOE was the subject of a prank consisting of a massive pizza delivery.

[137] More pranks were staged over the following days, with several mariachi bands congregating at Ferraz's door to play songs caricaturing the figures of Pedro Sánchez and Susana Díaz.

However, Díaz's actions to have her former protege removed—through what was dubbed by some as a "palace coup"—caused a lot of damage to her public reputation,[140] while leaving the party at the mercy of Mariano Rajoy, who subsequently began to push for conditions in exchange for avoiding a third general election.

While stating in a press conference on 3 October that the party remained opposed both to an abstention and a third election, he accepted that one of the two outcomes had to materialize eventually and asserted that "abstaining does not mean supporting Rajoy".

This included the Socialist Balearic, Basque and Cantabrian branches,[154][155][156] as well as numerous deputies still loyal to former secretary general Pedro Sánchez—and Sánchez himself, who still kept his seat in Congress.

[160][161] Díaz's deputy, Juan Cornejo, suggested that MPs refusing to "abide by the federal committee's decision"—in the eventuality an abstention to Rajoy was decided—should resign their seats.

Among these were Aragonese Susana Sumelzo, Basque Odon Elorza, independent for Madrid Margarita Robles, Galician Rocío de Frutos, and the two Balearic Islands MPs.

[176] Pedro Sánchez's final stance on such a vote remained unclear, with some sources suggesting he would break the party line and others that he would not attend the investiture, in order to avoid having to abstain.

[179] Some interpreted this to mean that public disobedience from the PSC could result in its expulsion from the parliamentary group as well as from PSOE's governing bodies,[180][181] and even lead to the end of the alliance between the parties, in place since 1978.

[186] However, this move backfired when a further group of MPs, opposed to abstention but initially willing to follow the party line, condemned any retaliation against conscience voters and expressed their willingness to join the rebel faction in solidarity with the PSC.

Antonio Hernando, PSOE's spokesperson in Congress and speaking on behalf of the party after Sánchez's dismissal, justified their impending abstention by citing the country's need for a government after months of deadlock.

[197] Finally, 15 PSOE MPs (Margarita Robles, Susana Sumelzo, Odón Elorza, Rocío de Frutos, Zaida Cantera, Meritxell Batet, Joan Ruiz, Merce Perea, Manuel Cruz, Lidia Guinart, Marc Lamuà, Pere Joan, Sofía Hernanz and Luz Martínez) chose to break the party line and vote against Rajoy in spite of the possible consequences threatened by the party's interim leadership.

Members from both parties favoured avoiding a total break up, but PSOE leaders strongly argued for "reviewing" their mutual relationship protocol, in effect since 1978.