The decision by Vox's National Executive Committee, made this Thursday, closes the last internal door for Ortega Smith, who had filed an appeal against his expulsion. This step makes the disciplinary measure definitive within the party's structure.
The conflict originated within Vox's municipal group in the Madrid City Council. In early March, the party's Guarantees Committee announced Ortega Smith's expulsion, citing a very serious infraction for thwarting his replacement as spokesperson in the Consistory. This decision followed his disciplinary action for disobedience and suspension of party membership.
Vox's leadership interpreted that Ortega Smith had defied an organizational decision regarding the reorganization of the municipal group. The leader, for his part, maintained from the outset that his continuity at the head of the group until the end of the term, in May 2027, was legitimate.
Vox's leadership, headed by Santiago Abascal, considers the disciplinary procedure concluded against one of the party's most recognized figures in Madrid. The dismissal of the appeal exhausts the internal avenues Ortega Smith could have used to try and reverse the measure.
This resolution deepens the rift between Vox and a figure who was one of its most visible faces for years, both in Madrid politics and in the Congress. The outcome underscores the national leadership's firmness in a conflict that had generated considerable political tension due to the affected individual's organizational and institutional weight.
From now on, Javier Ortega Smith will only be able to resort to the judicial system if he wishes to challenge his expulsion from the party.
