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All 41 seats in the City Council of Barcelona 21 seats needed for a majority | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Opinion polls | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Registered | 1,234,368 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 612,509 (49.6%) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A municipal election was held in Barcelona on Sunday, 27 May 2007, to elect the 8th City Council of the municipality. All 41 seats in the City Council were up for election. It was held concurrently with regional elections in thirteen autonomous communities and local elections all throughout Spain.
Under the 1978 Constitution, the governance of municipalities in Spain—part of the country's local government system—was centered on the figure of city councils (Spanish : ayuntamientos), local corporations with independent legal personality composed of a mayor, a government council and an elected legislative assembly. [1] [2] In the case of Barcelona, the top-tier administrative and governing body was the City Council of Barcelona. [3]
Voting for local assemblies was on the basis of universal suffrage, which comprised all nationals over 18 years of age, registered and residing in the municipality of Barcelona and in full enjoyment of their political rights (provided that they were not sentenced—by a final court ruling—to deprivation of the right to vote), as well as resident non-national European citizens and those whose country of origin allowed Spanish nationals to vote in their own elections by virtue of a treaty. [2] [4] [5]
Local councillors were elected using the D'Hondt method and a closed list proportional voting system, with an electoral threshold of five percent of valid votes (which included blank ballots) being applied in each municipality. [6] Each municipality constituted a multi-member constituency, entitled a number of seats based on the following scale: [7]
| Population | Councillors |
|---|---|
| <250 | 5 |
| 251–1,000 | 7 |
| 1,001–2,000 | 9 |
| 2,001–5,000 | 11 |
| 5,001–10,000 | 13 |
| 10,001–20,000 | 17 |
| 20,001–50,000 | 21 |
| 50,001–100,000 | 25 |
| >100,001 | +1 per each 100,000 inhabitants or fraction +1 if total is an even number |
The law did not provide for by-elections to fill vacated seats; instead, any vacancies that occurred after the proclamation of candidates and into the legislative term were to be covered by the successive candidates in the list and, when required, by the designated substitutes. [8]
The mayor was indirectly elected by the local assembly. [2] A legal clause required candidates to earn the vote of an absolute majority of councillors, or else the candidate of the most-voted party was to be automatically appointed to the post. In the event of a tie, the appointee was to be determined by lot. [9]
The term of city councils in Spain expired four years after the date of their previous election, with election day being fixed for the fourth Sunday of May every four years (as of 2025, this has been the year before a leap year). [10] Local councils could not be dissolved before the expiry of their term, except in cases of mismanagement that seriously harmed the public interest and implied a breach of constitutional obligations, in which case the Council of Ministers could—optionally—agree to call a by-election. [11]
Elections to local councils not bound to the open council system were officially called on 3 April 2007 with the publication of the corresponding decree in the BOE, setting election day for 27 May. [12]
The electoral law allowed for parties and federations registered in the interior ministry, alliances and groupings of electors to present lists of candidates. Parties and federations intending to form an alliance ahead of an election were required to inform the relevant electoral commission within ten days of the election call, whereas groupings of electors needed to secure the signature of a determined amount of the electors registered in the municipality for which they sought election, disallowing electors from signing for more than one list of candidates. In the case of Barcelona, as its population was over 1,000,001, at least 8,000 signatures were required. [13] Amendments to the electoral law in 2007 introduced requirements for a balanced composition of men and women in the electoral lists, so that candidates of either sex made up at least 40 percent of the total composition. [14]
Below is a list of the main parties and electoral alliances which contested the election:
| Candidacy | Parties and alliances | Leading candidate | Ideology | Previous result | Gov. | Ref. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vote % | Seats | ||||||||
| PSC–PM | List
| | Jordi Hereu | Social democracy | 33.6% | 15 | [15] [16] | ||
| CiU | List
| | Xavier Trias | Catalan nationalism Centrism | 21.4% | 9 | [17] | ||
| PP | List
| | Alberto Fernández Díaz | Conservatism Christian democracy | 16.1% | 7 | [18] | ||
| ERC–AM | List | | Jordi Portabella | Catalan independence Left-wing nationalism Social democracy | 12.8% | 5 | [19] | ||
| ICV– EUiA–EPM | List
| | Imma Mayol | Regionalism Eco-socialism Green politics | 12.1% | 5 | [20] [21] | ||
| C's | List | | Esperanza García | Liberalism | Did not contest | [22] [23] | |||
Incumbent Joan Clos had initially intended to run for re-election, [24] but his appointment as minister of Industry in the government of Spain under José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero saw Jordi Hereu becoming new mayor in September 2006. [15] [25]
The tables below list opinion polling results in reverse chronological order, showing the most recent first and using the dates when the survey fieldwork was done, as opposed to the date of publication. Where the fieldwork dates are unknown, the date of publication is given instead. The highest percentage figure in each polling survey is displayed with its background shaded in the leading party's colour. If a tie ensues, this is applied to the figures with the highest percentages. The "Lead" column on the right shows the percentage-point difference between the parties with the highest percentages in a poll.
The table below lists weighted voting intention estimates. Refusals are generally excluded from the party vote percentages, while question wording and the treatment of "don't know" responses and those not intending to vote may vary between polling organisations. When available, seat projections determined by the polling organisations are displayed below (or in place of) the percentages in a smaller font; 21 seats were required for an absolute majority in the City Council of Barcelona.
Exit poll
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Turnout | | | | | | | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 municipal election | 27 May 2007 | — | 49.6 | 29.9 14 | 25.5 12 | 15.6 7 | 8.8 4 | 9.3 4 | 3.9 0 | 4.4 |
| Ipsos/RTVE–FORTA [p 1] | 27 May 2007 | ? | ? | 30.0 14/16 | 24.0 11/13 | 13.4 6/7 | 9.9 4/5 | 9.9 3/4 | – | 6.0 |
| Opina/El País [p 2] [p 3] [p 4] | 16 May 2007 | 600 | ? | 36.0 15/16 | 22.0 9/10 | 15.0 6 | 11.5 5 | 11.5 5 | – | 14.0 |
| Opina/La Vanguardia [p 5] | 7–16 May 2007 | 600 | ? | 34.9 15/16 | 24.5 10/11 | 13.4 6 | 9.9 4 | 12.3 5 | 3.5 0 | 10.4 |
| GESOP/El Periódico [p 1] [p 6] [p 7] | 9–11 May 2007 | 800 | ? | 34.1 15/16 | 23.3 10/11 | 13.9 6 | 10.1 4/5 | 12.2 5/6 | 2.6 0 | 10.8 |
| Sigma Dos/El Mundo [p 6] [p 8] | 2–9 May 2007 | 500 | ? | 38.5 17 | 22.7 10 | 18.2 8 | 7.5 3 | 7.7 3 | – | 15.8 |
| TNS Demoscopia/Antena 3 [p 9] [p 10] | 8 May 2007 | ? | ? | ? 15/16 | ? 10/11 | ? 7 | ? 4/5 | ? 5/6 | – | ? |
| Opina/Cadena SER [p 11] [p 12] | 7 May 2007 | 800 | ? | 36.9 15/16 | 22.9 10/11 | 15.0 6 | 12.0 5 | 9.6 4 | 2.0 0 | 14.0 |
| CIS [p 13] | 9–29 Apr 2007 | 991 | ? | 32.0 14 | 21.9 9/10 | 13.2 5/6 | 14.0 6 | 13.3 6 | 2.7 0 | 10.1 |
| GESOP/El Periódico [p 14] | 3 Mar 2007 | ? | 50 | 33.0 14/15 | 24.0 10/11 | ? 7 | 11.5 5 | ? 4 | 2.0 0 | 9.0 |
| 2006 regional election | 1 Nov 2006 | — | 60.6 | 24.3 (11) | 29.5 (14) | 13.3 (6) | 12.1 (5) | 12.0 (5) | 4.5 (0) | 5.2 |
| GAPS/CiU [p 15] | 18–28 Sep 2006 | 800 | ? | 27.0– 28.0 12/13 | 27.6– 28.6 12/13 | ? 6/7 | ? 4/5 | ? 5/6 | – | 0.6 |
| GAPS/CiU [p 16] | 29 Nov 2005 | 800 | ? | 26.0 12 | 25.0 11 | 17.0 7/8 | 14.0 5/6 | 12.0 5 | – | 1.0 |
| 2004 EP election | 13 Jun 2004 | — | 43.7 | 40.1 (17) | 16.1 (7) | 21.9 (9) | 10.3 (4) | 9.1 (4) | – | 18.2 |
| 2004 general election | 14 Mar 2004 | — | 77.9 | 38.1 (16) | 20.0 (8) | 18.1 (8) | 14.6 (6) | 6.9 (3) | – | 18.1 |
| 2003 municipal election | 25 May 2003 | — | 59.2 | 33.6 15 | 21.4 9 | 16.1 7 | 12.8 5 | 12.1 5 | – | 12.2 |
The table below lists raw, unweighted voting preferences.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | | | | | Lead | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 municipal election | 27 May 2007 | — | 14.8 | 12.6 | 7.7 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 1.9 | — | 50.4 | 2.2 |
| GESOP/El Periódico [p 7] | 9–11 May 2007 | 800 | 31.1 | 16.0 | 5.3 | 7.1 | 8.6 | 2.1 | 18.6 | 7.3 | 15.1 |
| CIS [p 13] | 9–29 Apr 2007 | 991 | 22.8 | 16.6 | 4.6 | 8.0 | 10.1 | 1.5 | 23.6 | 10.1 | 6.2 |
| GESOP/El Periódico [p 7] | 3 Mar 2007 | ? | 29.1 | 17.9 | 5.4 | 7.6 | 7.5 | 1.3 | 18.1 | 8.6 | 11.2 |
| 2006 regional election | 1 Nov 2006 | — | 14.7 | 17.8 | 8.0 | 7.3 | 7.2 | 2.7 | — | 39.4 | 3.1 |
| City Council [p 17] | 7–9 Mar 2006 | 800 | 24.7 | 14.7 | 3.4 | 9.9 | 5.5 | – | 25.2 | 10.5 | 10.0 |
| City Council [p 18] | 14–16 Dec 2005 | 800 | 21.6 | 14.9 | 4.2 | 9.0 | 9.5 | – | 25.0 | 10.5 | 6.7 |
| City Council [p 19] | 6–10 Oct 2005 | 800 | 27.7 | 12.6 | 5.0 | 9.1 | 8.3 | – | 24.1 | 10.1 | 15.1 |
| City Council [p 20] | 6–8 Jun 2005 | 800 | 26.5 | 12.0 | 5.0 | 12.0 | 9.2 | – | 19.9 | 9.6 | 14.5 |
| City Council [p 21] | 14–16 Mar 2005 | 800 | 28.7 | 11.4 | 5.7 | 8.6 | 7.1 | – | 21.0 | 11.2 | 17.3 |
| City Council [p 22] | 1–3 Dec 2004 | 800 | 29.2 | 13.2 | 5.7 | 9.9 | 7.5 | – | 23.9 | 8.1 | 16.0 |
| City Council [p 23] | 7–10 Sep 2004 | 800 | 29.2 | 12.4 | 5.3 | 10.2 | 8.8 | – | 22.7 | 7.9 | 16.8 |
| City Council [p 24] | 16–21 Jun 2004 | 800 | 36.4 | 11.9 | 6.0 | 10.1 | 7.4 | – | 16.9 | 6.9 | 24.5 |
| 2004 EP election | 13 Jun 2004 | — | 17.5 | 7.0 | 9.6 | 4.5 | 4.0 | – | — | 56.3 | 18.2 |
| City Council [p 25] | 29–31 Mar 2004 | 800 | 30.5 | 14.9 | 5.6 | 9.6 | 9.2 | – | 23.1 | 5.5 | 15.6 |
| 2004 general election | 14 Mar 2004 | — | 29.6 | 15.5 | 14.1 | 11.4 | 5.4 | – | — | 22.1 | 14.1 |
| 2003 municipal election | 25 May 2003 | — | 19.8 | 12.6 | 9.5 | 7.6 | 7.1 | – | — | 40.8 | 7.2 |
The table below lists opinion polling on the victory preferences for each party in the event of a municipal election taking place.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | | | | | Other/ None | Lead | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opina/El País [p 4] | 16 May 2007 | 600 | 28.4 | 16.3 | 12.6 | 8.3 | 7.0 | – | – | 18.7 | 12.1 |
| CIS [p 13] | 9–29 Apr 2007 | 991 | 30.4 | 21.3 | 4.7 | 9.5 | 11.2 | 1.6 | 7.2 | 14.2 | 9.1 |
The table below lists opinion polling on the perceived likelihood of victory for each party in the event of a municipal election taking place.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | | | | | Other/ None | Lead | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opina/El País [p 4] | 16 May 2007 | 600 | 69.1 | 6.5 | 3.9 | 0.8 | 0.4 | – | – | 18.3 | 62.6 |
| CIS [p 13] | 9–29 Apr 2007 | 991 | 57.4 | 15.2 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.8 | 23.6 | 42.2 |
The table below lists opinion polling on leader preferences to become mayor of Barcelona.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | | | | | Other/ None/ Not care | Lead | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hereu PSC | Trias CiU | F. Díaz PP | Portabella ERC | Mayol ICV–EUiA | García C's | ||||||
| Opina/El País [p 4] | 16 May 2007 | 600 | 26.8 | 15.1 | 11.6 | 7.6 | 8.0 | 1.4 | 29.5 | 11.7 | |
| Opina/La Vanguardia [p 5] | 7–16 May 2007 | 600 | 34.0 | 22.0 | 5.0 | 7.0 | 9.0 | 2.0 | 10.0 | 11.0 | 12.0 |
| GESOP/El Periódico [p 7] | 9–11 May 2007 | 800 | 30.0 | 16.4 | 5.1 | 9.4 | 11.4 | 3.0 | 24.8 | 13.6 | |
| Opina/Cadena SER [p 12] | 7 May 2007 | 800 | 25.1 | 19.1 | 9.6 | 8.9 | 7.3 | 1.5 | 10.7 | 17.7 | 6.0 |
| GAPS/CiU [p 26] [p 27] | May 2007 | 800 | 22.9 | 15.8 | 8.7 | 6.9 | 8.5 | – | 18.6 | 18.5 | 7.1 |
| CIS [p 13] | 9–29 Apr 2007 | 991 | 23.9 | 15.7 | 3.3 | 7.1 | 10.6 | – | 4.5 | 34.8 | 8.2 |
| GESOP/El Periódico [p 14] [p 7] | 3 Mar 2007 | ? | 25.9 | 18.6 | 5.1 | 8.1 | 12.8 | – | 29.6 | 13.6 | |
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | Other/ None/ Not care | Lead | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hereu PSC | Trias CiU | ||||||
| GESOP/El Periódico [p 7] | 9–11 May 2007 | 800 | 50.1 | 32.5 | 17.4 | 17.6 | |
| GAPS/CiU [p 27] [p 28] | Mar 2007 | ? | 46.5 | 37.0 | 16.5 | 9.5 | |
| GESOP/El Periódico [p 7] | Mar 2007 | ? | 44.9 | 32.6 | 22.5 | 12.3 | |
| GAPS/CiU [p 28] | 18–28 Sep 2006 | 800 | 46.5 | 34.9 | 18.6 | 11.6 | |
| GESOP/El Periódico [p 7] | Sep 2006 | ? | 39.0 | 37.0 | 24.0 | 2.0 | |
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | Other/ None/ Not care | Lead | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clos PSC | Trias CiU | ||||||
| GAPS/CiU [p 16] | 29 Nov 2005 | 800 | 39.4 | 42.0 | 18.6 | 2.6 | |
The table below lists opinion polling on the perceived likelihood for each leader to become mayor.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | | | | | Other/ None/ Not care | Lead | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hereu PSC | Trias CiU | F. Díaz PP | Portabella ERC | Mayol ICV–EUiA | García C's | ||||||
| Opina/El País [p 4] | 16 May 2007 | 600 | 68.6 | 5.8 | 4.1 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 20.0 | 62.8 | |
| Opina/La Vanguardia [p 5] | 7–16 May 2007 | 600 | 69.0 | 11.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 17.0 | 58.0 |
| Opina/Cadena SER [p 12] | 7 May 2007 | 800 | 53.9 | 11.9 | 3.6 | 2.8 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 1.1 | 24.9 | 42.0 |
| GAPS/CiU [p 28] | May 2007 | 800 | 63.2 | 7.6 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 0.6 | – | 2.8 | 23.8 | 55.6 |
| Parties and alliances | Popular vote | Seats | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | ±pp | Total | +/− | ||
| Socialists' Party of Catalonia–Municipal Progress (PSC–PM) | 182,216 | 29.91 | −3.69 | 14 | −1 | |
| Convergence and Union (CiU) | 155,101 | 25.46 | +4.05 | 12 | +3 | |
| People's Party (PP) | 95,083 | 15.61 | −0.51 | 7 | ±0 | |
| Initiative–EUiA–Agreement for Municipal Progress (ICV–EUiA–EPM) | 56,953 | 9.35 | −2.72 | 4 | −1 | |
| Republican Left of Catalonia–Municipal Agreement (ERC–AM) | 53,707 | 8.81 | −3.99 | 4 | −1 | |
| Citizens–Party of the Citizenry (C's) | 23,625 | 3.88 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| The Greens–The Ecologist Alternative (EV–AE) | 4,754 | 0.78 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Anti-Bullfighting Party Against Mistreatment of Animals (PACMA) | 3,073 | 0.50 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Unsubmissive Seats–Alternative of Discontented Democrats (Ei–ADD) | 2,290 | 0.38 | +0.28 | 0 | ±0 | |
| Catalan Republican Party (RC) | 1,214 | 0.20 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Communist Party of the Catalan People (PCPC) | 972 | 0.16 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Republican Left–Left Republican Party (IR–PRE) | 822 | 0.13 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| For a Fairer World (PUM+J) | 717 | 0.12 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Barcelona for Self-determination (BxA–FIC) | 692 | 0.11 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Carmel/Blue Party (PAzul) | 618 | 0.10 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Citizen Force (FC's) | 591 | 0.10 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Family and Life Party (PFiV) | 463 | 0.08 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Humanist Party (PH) | 402 | 0.07 | ±0.00 | 0 | ±0 | |
| Platform for Catalonia (PxC) | 351 | 0.06 | +0.02 | 0 | ±0 | |
| Democratic and Social Centre (CDS) | 270 | 0.04 | −0.03 | 0 | ±0 | |
| Internationalist Struggle (LI (LIT–CI)) | 209 | 0.03 | ±0.00 | 0 | ±0 | |
| Internationalist Solidarity and Self-Management (SAIn) | 183 | 0.03 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Blank ballots | 25,002 | 4.10 | +2.42 | |||
| Total | 609,308 | 41 | ±0 | |||
| Valid votes | 609,308 | 99.48 | −0.17 | |||
| Invalid votes | 3,201 | 0.52 | +0.17 | |||
| Votes cast / turnout | 612,509 | 49.62 | −9.62 | |||
| Abstentions | 621,859 | 50.38 | +9.62 | |||
| Registered voters | 1,234,368 | |||||
| Sources [26] [27] [28] [29] | ||||||
| Investiture | |||||||
| Ballot → | 16 June 2007 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Required majority → | 21 out of 41 | ||||||
18 / 41 | |||||||
| 12 / 41 | ||||||
| 7 / 41 | ||||||
| 4 / 41 | ||||||
| Blank ballots | 0 / 41 | ||||||
| Absentees | 0 / 41 | ||||||
| Sources [26] [30] | |||||||