All against Puente or how the left and the right coincide in demanding the resignation of the Minister of Transport

The continuity of Óscar Puente at the head of the Ministry of Transport has caused an unusual political coincidence after the Urda (Toledo) railway accident, which has left at least 69 dead. From Alberto Núñez Feijóo’s PP and Vox to the Frente Amplio of Ada Colau, Junts and Adelante Andalucía, leaders of formations with very different positions have demanded that the minister leave the Government.

The pressure has increased this Friday, when investigations into the railway collision that has caused at least 69 dead are still ongoing and which comes nine months after the Adamuz (Córdoba) accident, where another 46 people died. The two tragedies total at least 115 deaths in 2026, a figure that has reopened the debate about the safety of the railway network and the political responsibility of those who manage it, although the causes of both disasters must be clarified separately.

The President of the Government himself, Pedro Sánchez, has acknowledged that the succession of accidents has broken citizens’ trust in high speed. However, his response has not been to replace the minister. Puente has explained that he put his position at the president’s disposal and that he rejected his departure.

The PP wants Puente to leave before appearing in Congress

The Popular Party is not willing to wait until next Tuesday, when Puente is scheduled to appear before the Permanent Deputation of Congress to offer explanations about the accident. Its parliamentary spokesperson, Ester Muñoz, has this Friday demanded that the minister resign or be dismissed before that appointment, considering that his continuity is incompatible with the seriousness of what happened.

"Puente should not make it to Tuesday", she stated during an interview on Las Mañanas de RNE, in which she reproached the Executive for the management of railway incidents and defended that political responsibilities cannot be postponed until the investigations conclude.

The PP’s demand is no longer limited, moreover, to the head of Transport. Alberto Núñez Feijóo has also called for Pedro Sánchez’s resignation, whom he holds responsible for having appointed the minister and for keeping him in office despite the second serious railway tragedy of the year.

"Whoever has failed in their duty to manage the Ministry safely has to resign, and also whoever put him there," the popular president has said, warning that, if both continue, the PP will try to remove them from Government in the 29N elections.

Vox demands resignations and calls for Puente to be brought before Justice

The Santiago Abascal party has accompanied its resignation demands with a judicial initiative. Vox has announced a complaint against Puente before the Supreme Court for alleged offenses of homicide and injuries through gross negligence, an accusation that must be examined by the Justice system and that does not imply that there is proven criminal liability.

Abascal had already demanded on Thursday, during an event in Ávila, that both the minister and Sánchez leave their posts. This Friday, the deputy José María Figaredo reiterated that position from Barcelona, although he assured that Puente’s resignation would be insufficient if possible criminal responsibilities are not also investigated.

Figaredo has even stated that the minister "should be brought before the courts" and has pointed out that, in his view, the real problem is the alleged "criminal responsibility of this Government".

Colau calls for resignation "as soon as possible" and increases pressure from the left

Ada Colau’s request introduces an important difference with respect to the demands of PP and Vox. The Broad Front candidate for the 29N general elections also believes that Puente must leave Transport, but bases her position on the need to assume political responsibilities and restore travelers’ trust, without attributing direct involvement in the accident to the minister.

"I will not go so far as to say whether this resignation should take place today, tomorrow or the day after, but we believe it should happen as soon as possible, and we hope that it will be so", she said this Friday in Barcelona.

Colau has confirmed that her formation has conveyed this request to Moncloa, convinced that the succession of two serious accidents requires a response that goes beyond technical explanations. For Frente Amplio, the deterioration of public trust obliges political decisions to be adopted, although the specific causes of the tragedy must still be determined.

The pressure on Puente no longer comes solely from his opponents on the right, but also from a candidacy situated to the left of the socialists.

The coordinator of Izquierda Unida, Antonio Maíllo, has also backed the demand for political responsibilities defended by Frente Amplio, which considers the minister's departure necessary to rebuild trust in the railway system.

Junts considers the minister's departure "unpostponable"

For Miriam Nogueras, spokesperson for Junts in the Congress, Puente's resignation cannot wait either. The independence leader has described his departure as "unpostponable" and has called for Sánchez to appear to explain what has happened and what measures he intends to adopt to guarantee railway safety.

"It is unacceptable that today people are afraid to get on a train", she stated from Girona, where she recalled that the President of the Government appeared last February 11, after the Adamuz accident, and committed to preventing a similar tragedy from happening again.

Nogueras has questioned whether railway infrastructure currently offers the necessary guarantees and has rejected the Executive continuing to resort to explanations that, in his view, do not solve the problem.

His request, however, distinguishes between the two political leaders. He demands Puente’s resignation; Sánchez, an appearance to render accounts. The Junts spokesperson has also called for respect for the investigation and has criticized the leak of the conversations between the drivers and the Adif control center.

Adelante Andalucía is clear about it

The demands for resignation from the left are not limited to Frente Amplio. The spokesperson for Adelante Andalucía, José Ignacio García, has also called for the minister’s departure after the Urda accident, considering that a tragedy of this kind forces political responsibilities to be assumed.

García made her request on Thursday, before Colau made public the position of Frente Amplio, and defended that demanding Puente’s resignation is not an exclusive demand of the conservative parties.

Podemos attacks Puente, but does not go so far as to ask for his resignation

Podemos has hardened its criticism against the minister, although, unlike Frente Amplio, it has not expressly called for him to leave the Government.

The party’s candidate for the Presidency, Irene Montero, has questioned the explanations that point to a possible human error at the Adif control center and has rejected that the debate over the accident’s responsibilities end up focusing on a worker.

"Do they really want us to believe that all the responsibility lies with a worker?", Montero has asked, who has also denounced the leak of the conversations prior to the crash and has warned of the risk of singling out employees before the investigation concludes.

Their criticisms are directed both at the initial interpretation of what happened and at the structural problems of the railway system. We may consider it necessary to examine the investments, the incidents and the safety mechanisms, and he has called for urgent explanations from Puente before Congress.

The PNV contemplates dismissal, while ERC and Bildu call for clarifying what happened

Among those who have questioned the Government's response is also the PNV, although its position is more cautious than that of the parties calling for an immediate resignation.

Its spokesperson in Congress, Maribel Vaquero, has argued that political responsibilities must be demanded "at the highest level" and has pointed out that these could lead to the resignation or dismissal of the minister. However, she considers it necessary first to know the causes of the accident in order to determine which decisions are appropriate.

"If it is untenable, he will have to take measures", Vaquero warned, in reference to Sánchez's statements about the seriousness of two railway tragedies having occurred in the same year.

ERC has also called for explanations. Its president, Oriol Junqueras, has demanded that Puente and Adif "show their faces" for the resources allocated to the maintenance of the infrastructure and has questioned the investments in maintenance, although he has not made an explicit request for resignation.

EH Bildu, for its part, has preferred to wait for the investigations to progress before pronouncing itself on possible political responsibilities.

Puente rules out leaving and Sánchez assumes the cost of backing him

Despite the calls for resignation, Puente has no intention of leaving Transportes. The minister explained this Friday that he made his position available to Sánchez and that the president rejected his resignation, considering it unfair for him to personally assume the consequences of an accident whose causes are still under investigation.

"I respect the calls for resignation but my mission is to clarify what happened", he stated during his appearance, in which he defended the need to clarify the failures that may have occurred at the Adif control center and in the safety systems.

Puente has also rejected assigning individual responsibility before having definitive conclusions. "I am not going to use any worker as a shield", he assured, while promising to adopt measures if the investigation uncovers organizational deficiencies or breaches of the protocols.

On Tuesday, the minister must appear before the Permanent Committee of Congress, unless there is some change in his situation. Until then, the pressure will continue to be directed both at him and at the president who has decided to support him. The investigation will determine what happened in Urda and what responsibilities may arise from the accident.