Vox demands JEC probe into Spain's July 2023 mail-in vote

Vox demands JEC probe into July 2023 mail-in vote and LOREG reform

Vox has formally asked the Central Electoral Board (JEC) to launch an investigation into "alleged fraud" in the mail-in voting for the July 2023 Spanish general elections, according to a document submitted by the party and reported by EFE. The formation led by Santiago Abascal wants the Civil Guard to lead the inquiry, focusing on the alleged link between Socialist Party member Leire Díez and the mail-in voting service at Correos. Simultaneously, Vox has registered a proposal in Congress to amend the Organic Law on the General Electoral Regime (LOREG) to "increase system guarantees" and "eradicate suspicions." The party clarifies its stance: it does not wish to promote "conspiracy theories."

What exactly does Vox ask of the Central Electoral Board?

The request has three pillars. First, investigating potential fraud in the July 23rd mail-in vote, with the Civil Guard as the executing body. Second, reviewing the JEC instruction on validating mail-in votes. Third, amending the LOREG so that voting is cast personally and in person by the voter. In other words, the party does not seek to eliminate mail-in voting but to secure it through physical presence and legal reform. This distinction matters because public debate has drifted toward abolishing the system, something no represented party has formally requested.

The Civil Guard, Leire Díez, and the Andalusian trail

The name anchoring the request is Leire Díez, a PSOE member whom Vox links to the mail-in voting issuance service at Correos. The Junta de Andalucía has asked Moncloa to clarify Díez's involvement in the 2022 regional elections, according to published reports. The accusation is unproven: it involves an alleged connection, with no known conviction or final ruling as of this discussion. On the other side of the balance, the thread cites media reports claiming the Civil Guard uncovered a network buying votes for the PSOE across multiple regions of Spain, though no official confirmation appears in the material.

PP agrees with PSOE and Sumar to exclude Vox from the JEC

While Vox files its request, the People's Party (PP) has agreed with the PSOE and Sumar to exclude Vox from the Central Electoral Board, according to published reports. This move leaves the party demanding the investigation without a seat on the body that must decide upon it. It is the kind of procedural detail that often decides more than speeches: those not at the table do not set the agenda. The paradox is evident and the party exploits it: asking to investigate the referee who removed them.

Mail-in voting under suspicion beyond Vox

Skepticism is not exclusive to Vox. Some argue mail-in voting should be banned, as in France for decades, while others claim that in the general elections, 100% of shifts in mail-in votes gave four or five extra seats to the governing bloc, coincidentally matching the difference with exit polls. The most optimistic calculation assumes the deviation is statistical noise; the pessimistic scenario posits the coincidence is too large. Neither is proven.

The most circulated technical argument is simple: if every polling station photographed the signed tally sheet and automatically uploaded it to a public platform, anyone could sum results and verify they match. That this isn't done, some argue, proves foul play. Others recall that in-person voting is equally manipulable and that results are published by district rather than by precinct, hindering citizen verification. Amidst this, a disorienting data point circulates: according to a tweet in the thread, a poll watcher recorded two judges confessing they don't perform the count because Indra provides the results, and they only reconcile what comes from the system.

Segovia, Asturias, and the resigning judge

The case extends beyond Correos. According to a circulating tweet, the presiding judge of the Segovia Provincial Court and president of the Provincial Electoral Board has resigned, accused of electoral crimes allegedly committed during the July 23rd count in Segovia. The Prosecutor's Office reportedly ruled that, despite being a judge, he must answer for the acts. In Asturias, according to similar sources, a poll watcher reported electoral fraud and recorded two judges confessing that electoral results are provided by Indra. The complainant, Pilar Baselga, summarizes it thus: "There are no free elections in Spain." These are accusations without any known final verdict.

European electoral law Spain fails to apply

According to published reports, the European Parliament has urged Sánchez to approve an electoral reform detrimental to the PNV, requiring a minimum threshold of 2% to 5% of votes cast. The Eurochamber accuses the Government of blocking the entry into force of European electoral law due to its investiture pact with the PNV. An EU mission traveled to Spain to check why Sánchez abusa regulations, and Moncloa snubbed the delegation. Spain is the only Member State that has not adapted the reform approved in 2018. The data is uncomfortable for the official narrative: the country boasting of Europeanism is last in class regarding electoral matters.

The OAS, Maduro, and the mirror effect

According to published reports, Venezuela's National Electoral Council has not published official tallies, and the OAS has confirmed Maduro's dictatorship committed electoral fraud and continues abusa human rights. The case enters the Spanish conversation as an uncomfortable mirror: if transparency is demanded there, consistency requires publishing tallies here. The comparison goes both ways, and neither side emerges well.

What might happen with the mail-in vote investigation?

The investigation depends on the JEC launching it and the Civil Guard taking it over. With Vox excluded from the JEC by the PP-PSOE-Sumar agreement, the balance of power within the body does not favor the request. LOREG reform needs a parliamentary majority, which Vox lacks. The most likely scenario, as of this discussion, is that the request is processed and archived, while the matter remains alive in courts via Segovia and Asturias cases. The prediction has caveats: if any open case succeeds, the political framework changes abruptly.