Cantabria government delegate accuses PP councillor of slapping him at goat fair

The complaint

Pedro Casares, the government delegate in Cantabria and regional secretary general of the PSOE, filed a complaint with the Guardia Civil on Monday, 2 November, against David Setién, a PP councillor on the Ruesga town council. Casares alleges a physical and verbal assault during the Feria ganadera de Arredondo, a livestock fair held on Sunday, 1 November, while he was there on an official visit. The Delegación del Gobierno en Cantabria confirmed the filing in a statement, saying it was made on the recommendation of security force officials. An action report by the national police officer escorting the delegate also exists. The statement did not name the accused, but PSOE sources who spoke to EFE identified him as the PP spokesman on the Ruesga council and the party's mayoral candidate in the 2023 elections.

What Casares describes

Casares told reporters on Tuesday, 3 November, that the incident happened around midday near the church square in Arredondo, where a traditional goat contest was taking place. He was waiting to greet the mayor, Leoncio Carrascal (PRC), and to take part in an information programme promoting the fair. According to his account, the councillor approached him to criticise his stance on wolf protection and then slapped him, which prompted the security officer accompanying him to step in. Casares said the man was very agitated, traded insults with him, and stayed a few metres away with a defiant tone after being moved aside. These are allegations made by the delegate, and the councillor has not spoken publicly on them.

Denial and internal inquiry

Alberto Núñez Feijóo, the PP leader, said the councillor denies the assault, but confirmed that the party's Génova headquarters has opened an investigation to establish what happened. In an interview with La Sexta, Feijóo promised firm action if the violence is confirmed.

“An assault on anyone, and on an authority, is incompatible with remaining a PP member.”

PP sources told Europa Press and EFE that they would not comment on the events, and said the councillor would not make any statement either.

Party and government reactions

The PSOE issued a statement demanding that Feijóo immediately halt what it called the violent drift of his party. It pointed to the Ruesga incident and to an image displayed on the balcony of the Hoyocasero town hall in Ávila, showing a coffin bearing the face of the president of the government, Pedro Sánchez. The mayor of Hoyocasero, Iván Picós (PP), condemned the display and filed his own complaint with the Guardia Civil asking for an investigation to identify those responsible. Rebeca Torró, the PSOE's organisation secretary, named Feijóo as the main person responsible for what she described as a spiral moving from insults to assaults, and wrote on X that this far right has no place in democracy.

Government spokesperson Elma Saiz addressed the matter at the press conference after the Council of Ministers on Tuesday, 3 November. She expressed solidarity with Casares, called the events very serious, and urged all political leaders to stop the escalation of insults and physical violence.

“In a democracy, of course, one can disagree, but there is no room under any circumstances for any kind of violence.”

The wider row

The PSOE warned that such conduct is becoming normalised during the pre-campaign period, with 29 November less than a month away. It argued that violence can never be an electoral card. The Delegación del Gobierno en Cantabria took a broader line in its statement, describing the events as very serious damage to democratic coexistence and political pluralism.

“Violence has no place in a democratic society under any circumstances.”

The statement also cited the constitution's values of freedom, justice, equality and political pluralism, and referred to a climate of tension and hatred in Spain. The complaint remains with the Guardia Civil, and no finding on the alleged assault has been reported.