Galicia is Mr Zapatero's biggest loss to the PP in the five years since he became prime minister, and is thus a significant boost to the PP's embattled leader, Mariano Rajoy, himself a Galician.
The PP's lead in some polls has risen to 14 points, enough to give it an absolute majority in parliament.
Madrid's PP regional boss, Esperanza Aguirre, would happily hand back control of the courts.
On March 25th Mr Rajoy's centre-right People's Party (PP) confounded the opinion polls by failing to wrest control of Andalusia, Spain's biggest region, from the Socialists.
ECONOMIST: Once again, Spain is on the front-line of the euro crisis
The opposition People's Party (PP) which wants tax and spending cuts, mocks such moves.
But he needs the support of the conservative People's Party (PP) to rule, and they are unnatural allies.
Some see a leftist group girding itself to battle a right-wing reformist People's Party (PP) government, led by Mariano Rajoy, that is likely to win power in the next election.
Pablo Zalba also remains an MEP in Spain's centre-right Popular Party (PP).
At November's general election 46% of Andalusians voted PP.
ECONOMIST: Once again, Spain is on the front-line of the euro crisis
Mr Garzon has named Francisco Camps, head of Valencia's regional government, as one of a dozen PP members suspected of taking bribes or gifts from businessmen, who also allegedly funnelled money into party funds.
Her pitch works both on discontented leftists who see Spain's regions as a driver of inequality and on former PP voters worried that their party has shifted too far right.
Spain's chief prosecutor has said there could be enough evidence to investigate the allegations. but the PP has said it will take legal action against those responsible for what it says is a smear campaign, while announcing an internal audit of its finances.
Meanwhile, Spain's chief state prosecutor has also said that there could be enough evidence to investigate the allegations against the PP, to see if anything illegal has taken place.
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