Isabel Díaz Ayuso knows that the opposition is waiting for her in the Madrid Assembly with a whole arsenal of reproaches for the purchase of the penthouse that has complicated the summer for the president in an extraordinary and unexpected way. She has been forced to come out and give explanations for the strange and opaque operation with which she bought that property that cannot be used for any public purpose. For this reason, the president, in a speech that will last between 90 and 120 minutes this Thursday, will try to appease the criticism with a flood of announcements, among which stand out that metro line 6 will be open 24 hours on weekends and the increase of aid to women under 35 who have a third child. In the final stretch of her term, Ayuso wants to regain control of the narrative.
Más Madrid and PSOE have tried until the last moment to access the file that Planifica Madrid, a public company, should have prepared to execute the purchase, which it hid and did not publicize as it does with other routine activities. Más Madrid maintains, with the regulation in hand, that the Government must make it public before September 17, the date set for the appearance of the Minister of the Presidency to offer explanations. The Government, however, argues that the left-wing party is misinterpreting the rule, since in reality the article they invoke only applies to commissions. In any case, the opposition will have at hand everything that has been published on the matter — which is not little — to respond to the president on Friday, which is when it is their turn.
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The appearance also serves to gauge the president’s mood. In August, after the purchase of the penthouse came to light, she appeared irritated and tense, although she did not interrupt her press conferences and faced journalists’ questions almost daily. Her supporters were surprised that the president, unlike other crises, did not articulate a firm and forceful response about the reasons that led her Government to buy the penthouse. Within the PP itself, there was some astonishment at seeing the party leaders in Madrid paralyzed, usually very combative and willing to fight on any issue. Today, an energetic Ayuso is expected to regain the initiative and straighten the course to face the remaining months until the elections, in spring 2027, like a steamroller.
