The public company Correos has chosen to look the other way. Although the Guardia Civil is investigating alleged electoral fraud in postal voting in favor of the PSOE in the 2019 municipal elections, the company, currently headed by socialist Pedro Saura, has not taken an active role in the matter. Investigators have found clear evidence of irregularities at the post office in Albaida del Aljarafe, a small town in Seville. This town has since become a symbol of a practice that may have been replicated in other regions of Spain.
The incidents under investigation date back six years, but the investigations are still ongoing. During this time, investigators have managed to identify approximately 100 allegedly fraudulent votes that were processed without the knowledge or authorization of the citizens concerned. Several employees of the public company had promised at the time that they would appear in court if a single irregularity was proven. Today, however, with dozens of documented cases, none of them have kept their word, although some company employees are under investigation.
The excuses weren’t long in coming. One of the former office directors claimed to have retired; another, according to sources close to the investigation, was promoted and refused to get involved. All of this happened during the Correos presidency of Pedro Saura, former Secretary of State to José Luis Ábalos and former president of Paradores, where the former minister organized meetings during the pandemic.
The Guardia Civil stated in a report to the court that irregularities may have occurred at the Albaida del Aljarafe post office in the processing of election applications. Two witnesses testified that they did not personally process the required documents. Rather than clarify the facts, Correos chose to remain silent.
One of the witnesses is a resident of the town who testified before the Guardia Civil. He explained that he did not have to visit an office; he simply submitted his ID and signed some papers. “I was offered a one-month contract with the city council in exchange for signing the absentee ballot in favor of the PSOE,” he explained bluntly. He added that he never personally exercised his right to vote and that the entire process was managed by a third party who returned his ID card to him two days later. The promised contract never materialized. According to his account, he was told to be patient: “I had to wait until a seat became available.” He eventually found a job on his own.
In another case, an elderly woman admitted that her daughter had voted for her “because she couldn’t travel.” Although she insisted it was a “voluntary” vote, officials confirmed that legal protocol had been violated: There was no personal appearance at the post office, nor was the original ID card issued. The elderly woman had never signed a power of attorney.
Several situations were identified where these requirements were not met: individuals who did not go to the post office but whose votes were processed; documents hand-delivered to third parties; and ballots mailed without the holder’s direct involvement in the process. According to the Organic Law of the General Electoral Regime (Loreg), absentee voting must be requested in person with a Correos employee, and the original ID card must be verified. Intermediaries are only permitted with powers of attorney.
The alleged irregularities go even further. One citizen was not even aware that a vote had been cast for him. He only learned of it when the judge called him as a witness. In his testimony, this citizen assured the judge that he never cast his vote in those elections and that the signature on the absentee ballot application attributed to him was not his. “I never vote,” he said during his interrogation.
The witness, who appeared visibly surprised, reiterated that he not only did not participate in the elections of May 26, 2019, but that he had never exercised his right to vote. After the judge reminded him of his duty to tell the truth, he asked him if he had participated in the elections that day. The man replied sharply: “No.” When pressed by the judge, who asked him about the possibility of having applied for a postal vote, he repeated: “Nothing, I didn’t sign anything.”
During his questioning, he was shown a document containing a request for a The witness firmly denied that the signature was his: “It’s not mine.” This was confirmed by the lecturer, who compared the issued document with the signature on his national identity card (DNI). He added that not even the handwriting matched his own.
These facts are not limited to an isolated case in a small Andalusian municipality; investigators point to “a systematic pattern of actions that could have been repeated in other parts of Spain,” according to sources consulted by this newspaper. Almería, Murcia, Tenerife, Melilla, and Ciudad Real are among the areas where proceedings have also been initiated for similar incidents.
In many of these locations, the pattern was the same: vulnerable or dependent voters, forged signatures, promises of public contracts, and local officials involved in irregular electoral processes. The common denominator in all scenarios is Correos’ inaction. The company, a key pillar in the postal voting control chain, has taken no steps to clarify the events or conducted internal audits of the offices cited by the Guardia Civil. Nor has it expressed any intention to cooperate with the judiciary beyond what is legally required. According to legal sources, this passive attitude could be interpreted as a form of institutional cover-up, especially considering that some of the practices described directly violate the provisions of the Electoral Code.
In Albaida del Aljarafe, the small municipality in Seville where these investigations began, many residents are still waiting for answers. “They told us they would investigate and that something like this couldn’t be allowed,” complains one of the complainants. “But Correos is silent. And so is the PSOE.” At the moment, the only things that seem to speak are the documents: the signatures that don’t match and the votes that arrived by mail… without anyone sending them.
