The Basque PP voices suspicions about postal voting, while Sémper defends the system

The president of the Basque PP, Javier de Andrés, expressed his suspicions about postal voting ahead of the general election on 29 November. Speaking at a press conference in Vitoria, he said that “strange cases” and “somewhat odd things” had been seen in previous elections, although he was initially unable to specify which situations he was referring to.

De Andrés acknowledged that it is not easy to swap one bag of ballots for another, but said he suspected someone might try to do so. He also linked his doubts to Leire Díez’s presence at Correos, where she held positions related to institutional relations and philately. However, he provided no evidence of electoral manipulation and gave no details of events that would substantiate his suspicions.

A different position from the PP leadership

The statements contrast with the message from PP spokesperson Borja Sémper. In an interview, Sémper said that the postal voting system has safeguards and is subject to checks, including oversight by the Central Electoral Commission, on which the PP is represented. He urged people to vote, either in person or by post, particularly if they cannot go to their polling station.

Sémper was responding to doubts also expressed by Isabel Díaz Ayuso, president of the Community of Madrid, who had advised against voting by post. Although he said he understood that people might distrust the Government, the spokesperson did not present fraud as a fact and argued that people should be encouraged to participate through either method.

What is known about the references to Correos

De Andrés linked his suspicions to Leire Díez, whom he called a “fixer” and accused of possibly intending to manipulate votes. Correos, for its part, has stated that Díez was never responsible for postal voting. According to the information available, the positions she held at the postal company were related to other duties.

When asked about the alleged precedents in previous elections, De Andrés said he could not remember exactly which irregularities he meant. Sources close to him later pointed to the investigation of alleged fraud during the campaign for the 2023 regional elections in Melilla. That reference does not prove that postal votes were manipulated in the elections to which the party leader was referring.

Therefore, coverage of these statements must distinguish between the suspicions expressed by De Andrés and the established facts: the party leader presented no concrete evidence of any alteration of postal votes, while Sémper defended the checks in place and urged people to use postal voting alongside in-person voting.