Abascal’s wife, Lidia Bedman, billed 60,000 euros a year to Intereconomy, a group to which Vox allocates a lot of money

The figure of Lidia Bedman, known for being the second wife of Santiago Abascal And for its facet of influencer in social networks, it joins the payroll of consorts that reach the headlines dotted with alleged cases of corruption. The ‘Vox First Lady’ has acquired an unexpected dimension when revealed that, between 2019 and 2022, he was receiving 63,600 euros per year by Editorial Ivat SL, a company linked to the Economic Nub of Vox, the party led by her husband. The information published by The confidential It exposes a complex framework of business and political relations that raises questions about fund management and the links between political training and businesses in its closest environment.

The case of Lidia Bedman not only highlights the connections between Vox and its business environment, but also raises broader issues about the relationship between politics and businesses in Spain. In a country where scandals related to the financing of the parties have been frequent, this episode adds to a long history of cases that have undermined public confidence in institutions.

According to the documentation, Bedman issued a series of invoices to Editorial Ivat SL, owned by Gabriel Ariza, a key figure in the Universe of Vox and son of Julio Ariza, founder of the Interevomy Group. The publishing house, which specializes in religious titles, ultraconservatives and antiglobalists, has published works by authors linked to the party, such as the Eurodiputed Jorge Buxadé and Manuel Acosta, deputy in the Catalan Parliament. In this ecosystem, Bedman worked as an autonomous, providing “social media and marketing” consulting services, although the details of these services and their scope have not transcended beyond the concepts of invoices.

Bedman’s first bill, dated September 2019

The first bill of six years ago amounted to 10,600 euros, corresponding to work done in July and August of that year. From then on, the influencer issued similar invoices bimonthly, adding a total of 63,600 euros per year, which represented 26.7% of the income declared by Editorial IVAT SL in 2023. These payments stand out in the records of the Editorial, where most expenses do not exceed 1,000 euros. To this is added the fact that the registered office used by Bedman in his bills coincides with the house he shares with Abascal in the Arturo Soria neighborhood, in Madrid.

The economic relationship between Bedman and Editorial Ivat SL is not an isolated case, but one more piece in a business network that feeds on Vox linked funds. The editorial is part of the Intereconomy group, historically linked to the political right in Spain, and shares links with other companies such as Tizona Communication SL, dedicated to political consulting and the formation of party leaders. This firm, also directed by Gabriel Ariza and Kiko Méndez Monastery, nearby advisor to Abascal until recently, has received large payments from Vox and its Disensors Foundation.

In addition, Ariza’s activity extends to Lepanto Strately SL, another society linked to the management of the Digital Medium La Gaceta de la Iberosfera, one of Vox’s ideological speakers. This framework shows how the resources of the party and its business environment are intertwined, generating questions about transparency in the use of funds and the role of figures close to the training leader.

Lidia Bedman, a degree in advertising and public relations, has established himself as a recognized figure in social networks, where he has 260,000 followers and shares content related to fashion and beauty. However, before assuming this role, he had a brief incursion into active policy, presenting himself as a Vox candidate for the Madrid Assembly in 2015, although he failed to obtain a seat. His marriage to Abascal in 2018 marked the beginning of a stage in which his media influence has grown in parallel to the vox boom.

Despite its popularity as an influencer, its professional relationship with the editorial sector or its economic relationship with companies linked to the party had never been known. The revelation that a significant part of the income of Editorial Ivat SL were destined to pay Bedman’s services, he raises questions about the suitability of these payments and the relationship between their services and the purpose of the publisher.

Neither Vox nor Editorial IVAT SL have offered explanations about payments to Lidia Bedman. According to El Confidencial, The party has declined to comment on this information, which feeds doubts about transparency in the management of training environmental resources. For his part, Bedman has also not offered public statements that clarify his role in the publishing house or the concrete nature of the services he provided.

This lack of clarity occurs in a context in which the financing of political parties and their relations with related companies are under increasing public scrutiny. In the case of Vox, whose political discourse focuses on the defense of austerity and the fight against what it defines as ideological “beach bars, the revelation of these payments could have significant political and media implications.

The connection between Editorial IVAT SL, Tizona Communication SL and other companies linked to the Vox environment reveals a financing model that depends largely on the party itself. These types of structures, in which companies related to political training receive large sums of money from it, can be legal, but raise doubts about the independence and final destination of those resources.

The fact that Editorial IVAT SL has published books of party leaders and figures of the extreme international right, such as Giorgia Meloni or Jean Marie Le Pen, reinforces the idea that the publishing house operates as an extension of Vox’s ideological strategy. In this context, payments to Lidia Bedman register in a network of business relations that seems designed to reinforce the message and structure of the party.

Beyond the possible legal or ethical implications, the revelation of payments to Bedman is a reminder of how the public and private spheres are often intertwined in ways that can be problematic. At a time when transparency and accountability are increasing demands by society, this case could intensify the debate about the need to establish more strict controls in the financing of parties and their business environments.

For now, neither Santiago Abascal nor Lidia Bedman have offered public explanations about this matter, which reinforces the perception of opacity around the economic activities of the VOX environment. Meanwhile, media attention remains focused on Bedman’s role as a figure at the crossing between politics, business and media influence.