2015 Spanish general election

Last updated

2015 Spanish general election
Flag of Spain.svg
  2011
20 December 2015
2016  

All 350 seats in the Congress of Deputies and 208 (of 266) seats in the Senate
176 seats needed for a majority in the Congress of Deputies
Opinion polls
Registered36,511,848 Increase2.svg 2.0%
Turnout25,438,532 (69.7%)
Increase2.svg 0.8 pp
 First partySecond partyThird party
  Mariano Rajoy 2015j (cropped).jpg Pedro Sanchez 2015h (cropped).jpg Pablo Iglesias 2015 (cropped).jpg
Leader Mariano Rajoy Pedro Sánchez Pablo Iglesias
Party PP PSOE Podemos [a]
Leader since2 September 2003 26 July 2014 15 November 2014
Leader's seat Madrid Madrid Madrid
Last election187 seats, 45.0% [b] 110 seats, 28.8%Did not contest
Seats won1239069
Seat changeDecrease2.svg 64Decrease2.svg 20Increase2.svg 65 [c]
Popular vote7,236,9655,545,3155,212,711
Percentage28.7%22.0%20.7%
SwingDecrease2.svg 16.3 pp Decrease2.svg 6.8 pp New party

 Fourth partyFifth partySixth party
  Albert Rivera 2015c (cropped).jpg Gabriel Rufian (election).jpg Francesc Homs 2016 (cropped).jpg
Leader Albert Rivera Gabriel Rufián Francesc Homs
Party C's ERC–CatSí DiL
Leader since9 July 20067 November 20156 November 2015
Leader's seat Madrid Barcelona Barcelona
Last electionDid not contest3 seats, 1.1%16 seats, 4.2% [d]
Seats won4098
Seat changeIncrease2.svg 40Increase2.svg 6Decrease2.svg 8
Popular vote3,514,528604,285567,253
Percentage13.9%2.4%2.2%
SwingNew partyIncrease2.svg 1.3 pp Decrease2.svg 2.0 pp

2015 Spanish election - Results.svg
2015 Spanish election - AC results.svg
2015 Spanish general election map.svg

Prime Minister before election

Mariano Rajoy
PP

Prime Minister after election

No government formed
and fresh election called.
Mariano Rajoy remains
acting Prime Minister

Contents

A general election was held in Spain on Sunday, 20 December 2015, to elect the members of the 11th Cortes Generales under the Spanish Constitution of 1978. All 350 seats in the Congress of Deputies were up for election, as well as 208 of 266 seats in the Senate. At exactly four years and one month since the previous one, this remains the longest timespan between two general elections since the Spanish transition to democracy, and the only time in the country that a general election has been held on the latest possible date allowed under law. [1]

Immediately after assuming office following the 2011 election, the new government under Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy adopted a harsh austerity agenda including social spending cuts, tax hikes and a labour market reform to address the ongoing economic crisis (amid soaring unemployment, public deficit and bond yields), as well as the request of a bank bailout through the European Stability Mechanism, which were met with widespreat protests and two general strikes. A number of corruption scandals affecting the ruling People's Party (PP)—most notably, the Bárcenas affair, the Púnica case and the ongoing judicial probes into the Gürtel case—further weakened the government's position and increased social distrust in traditional parties. During this period, the Monarchy underwent a reputation crisis over King Juan Carlos's elephant-hunting trips and the Nóos case involving Infanta Cristina and her spouse, leading to the King's abdication in favour of his son, who acceded to the throne as Felipe VI.

Public discontent with the political system showed up in the results of the 2014 European Parliament election in Spain—which saw the emergence of newcomer parties Podemos (Spanish for "We can") and Citizens (C's), presenting themselves as heralds of "new politics" and curtailing expectations for the more traditional United Left (IU) and Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD)—while the 2015 local and regional elections resulted in a wipeout of most of the PP's territorial power in favour of left-wing administrations. The resignation of Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba as leader of the main opposition Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) triggered a leadership contest which was won by Pedro Sánchez. In Catalonia, opposition to the ruling PP served as a catalyst for a pro-independence push being supported by regional authorities under Convergence and Union (CiU), which held a non-binding self-determination referendum in 2014 defying orders from the Constitutional Court. The outcome of the 2015 Catalan election briefly boosted C's polling numbers before dwindling to a Podemos's comeback during the general election campaign.

The election saw the PP, PSOE and IU scoring historical lows, with Rajoy's party seeing the largest loss of support for a sitting government since 1982. Podemos and C's won a combined 109 seats and over eight million votes, mostly at the cost of the main traditional parties, the IU-led Popular Unity platform, UPyD and peripheral nationalist parties: aside of a major breakthrough by Republican Left of Catalonia and the breakup of CiU after 37 years of existence, support for the abertzale left EH Bildu fell sharply, the Basque Nationalist Party stagnated, Canarian Coalition clung on to a single seat and both Geroa Bai and the Galician Nationalist Bloc were shut out from parliament. With the most-voted party obtaining just 123 seats and a third party winning an unprecedented 69 seats—the previous record being 23 in 1979—the result marked the transition from an imperfect two-party system to a fully-fledged multi-party system. After months of inconclusive negotiations, neither PP or PSOE were able to garner enough votes to secure a majority, leading to a fresh election in 2016.

Background

The People's Party (PP) under Mariano Rajoy won the 2011 general election in a landslide, running on a platform to carry out sweeping reforms from the Spanish government to tackle the Great Recession. [2] Support for the ruling Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) collapsed amid fury at the crisis's handling by the previous prime minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. [3] A subsequent leadership contest saw the former deputy prime minister and 2011 candidate, Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba, narrowly defeat Zapatero's defence minister, Carme Chacón. [4]

Throughout 2012 and 2013, Rajoy's government adopted a harsh austerity agenda to tackle the country's rampant public deficit and soaring unemployment, including social spending cuts and tax hikes, [5] [6] a labour market reform cutting severance payments, [7] and a General State Budget dubbed "the most austere" since the 1970s. [8] [9] The nationalization of Bankia after its May 2012 crash fueled concerns of Spain becoming a new focal point of the European debt crisis, [10] [11] [12] while liquidity shortages prompted three regions—the Valencian Community, the Region of Murcia and Catalonia—to request financial help from the central government. [13] [14] [15] Rising bond yields in June 2012 forced Rajoy to request a bank bailout from the European Stability Mechanism, [16] whose terms saw the announcement of a massive austerity package on 11 July; this included reforms in taxation (in the energy sector, further hikes on VAT and environmental taxes, or the abolition of home purchase deductions), spending cuts (such as in unemployment benefits, civil servants' bonuses, or welfare dependency), a public administration overhaul (with reductions of local councillors and public companies), and privatizations (affecting rail, air and maritine transport services). [17] [18] Additional measures saw the adoption of health copayments [19] [20] and judicial court fees, [21] [22] major cuts into education and healthcare spending, [23] [24] a slash in coal industry subsidies, [25] a temporary tax amnesty, [26] and the detachment of pension revaluation from the CPI. [27] Amid accusations of insensitivity, [28] plummeting ratings, [29] [30] and criticism for reneging on many election pledges, [31] Rajoy defended his measures as necessary to correct the country's course, [32] [33] [34] while justifying his U-turns on the economic landscape he inherited. [35] [36] To lessen the impact of the fiscal and budgetary adjustment, his government secured a three-year extension to comply with the EU deficit target. [37] [38]

The austerity measures adopted by the government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy (pictured on 11 July 2012) were frequently described as "harsh" and "brutal", and helped fuel an anti-austerity movement in Spain. 20120711. Comparecencia del presidente en el Pleno del Congreso.jpg
The austerity measures adopted by the government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy (pictured on 11 July 2012) were frequently described as "harsh" and "brutal", and helped fuel an anti-austerity movement in Spain.

In the domestic field, the government passed a new Education Law (the LOMCE or so-called Wert Law), criticized for being "ideologically driven", promoting school segregation, and giving greater prominence to Spanish over regional languages. [39] [40] Another bill, the Citizen Security Law (dubbed the "Gag Law" by critics), was regarded as a crackdown on Spaniards' civil and political rights of freedom of assembly and expression, laying out strict guidelines on street protests and steep fines to offenders. [41] [42] An attempt to amend the existing abortion law by a much stricter regulation (intended to allow abortion only in cases of rape and pregnancy complications) [43] was thwarted due to public outrage, [44] [45] with the bill's scrapping leading to the resignation of its proponent, justice minister Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón. [46] The government had to deal with an isolated Ebola infection in Spain following the medical evacuation of two Ebola-infected priests from West Africa, [47] receiving criticism for the alleged failure of security protocols and the crisis's confusing and disorganized management. [48] [49] [50]

During this period, political corruption allegations plagued the ruling PP and various other parties and institutions, with scandals involving former CEOE chair Gerardo Díaz Ferrán; [51] [52] the PP's Bárcenas affair (a parallel bookkeeping system for undeclared cash donations, [53] [54] subsequently used as a slush fund); [55] [56] [57] illegal party funding probes affecting the PP [58] [59] [60] and Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC); [61] kickback-for-contract schemes in regional and local administrations (the Pokémon, [62] "three-percent", [63] Púnica, [64] [65] and Gürtel cases, [66] [67] the latter seeing the downfall of the health minister, Ana Mato); [68] misuse of layoff funds by the PSOE-led Andalusian government (the ERE case, which prompted the resignation of regional president José Antonio Griñán); [69] [70] illicit dealings by former Catalan president Jordi Pujol and his family; [71] [72] [73] [74] or an expenses controversy affecting former Caja Madrid directors. [75] [76] [77] Scandals spread to the Royal Household with the Nóos case (affecting the Dukes of Palma, Iñaki Urdangarín and Cristina de Borbón, for alleged crimes of tax fraud and money laundering), [78] [79] [80] [81] and King Juan Carlos's botched Botswana elephant-hunting trip in 2012. [82] [83] The erosion of the King's popularity, [84] together with health issues, [85] [86] led to his abdication in June 2014 in favour of his son, who acceded to the throne as Felipe VI. [87] [88] The amount and scope of white-collar crime scandals and misbehavings was compared by media to the Italian Tangentopoli in the 1990s. [89] [90]

Following the 2012 Catalan election, regional president Artur Mas and ERC leader Oriol Junqueras reached a confidence and supply accord that envisaged a roadmap to independence. El President Mas acompanyat d'Oriol Junqueras aquest mati al Parlament.jpg
Following the 2012 Catalan election, regional president Artur Mas and ERC leader Oriol Junqueras reached a confidence and supply accord that envisaged a roadmap to independence.

Discontent with the central government, and the Constitutional Court of Spain's curtailment of the Catalan Statute of Autonomy, fueled pro-independence sentiment in the region, materializing in a massive demonstration in Barcelona on 11 September 2012. [91] Rajoy's refusal to a "fiscal pact" proposal by regional president Artur Mas to give Catalonia more tax autonomy pushed Convergence and Union (CiU) into supporting independence, [92] [93] [94] with Mas calling a snap election for November. [95] His failure in securing an absolute majority forced CiU to rely on confidence and supply support from Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) [96] [97] in exchange for a roadmap to independence. [98] [99] Such plans saw the newly-elected parliament adopting a sovereignty declaration [100] and authorizing a non-binding self-determination referendum in 2014, [101] both of which were voided by the Constitutional Court. [102] [103] This Catalan sovereignist process (the so-called "process") saw a strong social mobilization in the region (with yearly National Day of Catalonia gatherings in 2013, 2014 and 2015), [104] [105] [106] as well as internal divisions between the Socialists' Party of Catalonia and the PSOE. [107] [108] Growing divergences between CiU's constituent parties—CDC and Democratic Union of Catalonia—culminated in the alliance's breakup in June 2015 after 37 years of existence. [109]

Austerity in Spain was attributed an increase in inequality and a deterioration in economic and social rights, [110] worsened by a wave of evictions. [111] [112] Growing discontent against Rajoy's government saw an early blow in the 2012 Andalusian election as the first cuts settled. [113] This was followed by a strong social reaction to both austerity and corruption, with the Indignados Movement promoting mass protests and demonstrations; [114] [115] [116] two general strikes being called by trade unions in March and November 2012; [117] [118] the Asturian miners' strike of 2012; [119] [120] occupations and anti-eviction actions by the Mortgage Victims Platform; [121] [122] the "Surround" and "Besiege Congress" protests; [123] [124] or the so-called "citizen tides" and "dignity march" demonstrations. [125] [126] [127] The opposition PSOE under Rubalcaba—reeling from Zapatero's perceived crisis mismanagement and ongoing infighting—remained unable to capitalize on social unrest, [128] [129] which paved the way for new parties to take hold: the 2014 European Parliament election saw the emergence of political scientist Pablo Iglesias's Podemos party (Spanish for "We can"), [130] which funnelled anti-establishment sentiment into a shake up of the two-party system. [131] [132] Rubalcaba resigned over his party's dwindling support, [133] with the 2014 PSOE congress seeing a dark horse candidate, Pedro Sánchez, elected as new leader. [134] The snap 2015 Andalusian election saw strong performances by both Podemos and the liberal Citizens (C's) party under Albert Rivera, [135] [136] and the 2015 local and regional elections led to both parties consolidating their gains nationally, [137] [138] as well as in the PP being swept out from power in most regions and major urban centers. [139]

In the run-up to the general election, Rajoy vowed to reverse some of his austerity measures (promising tax cuts, pay raises for public workers, and increased social spending) owing to an improving economic outlook. [140] [141] Concurrently, Catalonia held a "plebiscitary" election in September 2015, [142] which resulted in a joint CDC–ERC list (Together for Yes) relying on support from the pro-independence Popular Unity Candidacy (with the three parties subsequently approving the start of a 18-month independence process), [143] [144] and in a strong performance by C's that led to a three-horse race in opinion polling with PP and PSOE. [145] [146]

Overview

Under the 1978 Constitution, the Spanish Cortes Generales were envisaged as an imperfect bicameral system. [147] [148] The Congress of Deputies had greater legislative power than the Senate, having the ability to vote confidence in or withdraw it from a prime minister and to override Senate vetoes by an absolute majority of votes. [149] Nonetheless, the Senate possessed a limited number of functions—such as ratification of international treaties, authorization of collaboration agreements between autonomous communities, enforcement of direct rule, regulation of interterritorial compensation funds, and its role in constitutional amendment and in the appointment of members to the Constitutional Court and the General Council of the Judiciary—which were not subject to the Congress's override. [150]

Electoral system

Voting for each chamber of the Cortes Generales was on the basis of universal suffrage, which comprised all nationals over 18 years of age 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, nor being legally incapacitated. [151] [152] Additionally, non-resident citizens were required to apply for voting before being permitted to vote, a system known as "begged" voting (Spanish : Voto rogado). [153] [154]

The Congress of Deputies was entitled to a minimum of 300 and a maximum of 400 seats, with the electoral law setting its size at 350. 348 members were elected in 50 multi-member constituencies—corresponding to the provinces of Spain, with each being allocated an initial minimum of two seats and the remaining 248 being distributed in proportion to their populations—using the D'Hondt method and a closed list proportional voting system, with an electoral threshold of three percent of valid votes (which included blank ballots) being applied in each constituency. The two remaining seats were allocated to Ceuta and Melilla as single-member districts and elected using plurality voting. [155] [156] The use of the electoral method resulted in a higher effective threshold based on the district magnitude and the distribution of votes among candidacies. [157]

As a result of the aforementioned allocation, each Congress multi-member constituency was entitled the following seats: [158]

SeatsConstituencies
36 Madrid
31 Barcelona
15 Valencia (–1)
12 Alicante, Seville
11 Málaga (+1)
10 Murcia
9 Cádiz (+1)
8 A Coruña, Asturias, Balearic Islands, Biscay, Las Palmas
7 Granada, Pontevedra, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Zaragoza
6 Almería, Badajoz, Córdoba, Gipuzkoa, Girona, Tarragona, Toledo
5 Cantabria, Castellón, Ciudad Real, Huelva, Jaén (–1), León, Navarre, Valladolid
4 Álava, Albacete, Burgos, Cáceres, La Rioja, Lleida, Lugo, Ourense, Salamanca
3 Ávila, Cuenca, Guadalajara, Huesca, Palencia, Segovia, Teruel, Zamora
2 Soria

208 seats in the Senate were elected using an open list partial block voting system: in constituencies electing four seats, electors could vote for up to three candidates; in those with two or three seats, for up to two candidates; and for one candidate in single-member districts. Each of the 47 peninsular provinces was allocated four seats, whereas for insular provinces, such as the Balearic and Canary Islands, districts were the islands themselves, with the larger (Mallorca, Gran Canaria and Tenerife) being allocated three seats each, and the smaller (Menorca, IbizaFormentera, Fuerteventura, La Gomera, El Hierro, Lanzarote and La Palma) one each. Ceuta and Melilla elected two seats each. Additionally, autonomous communities could appoint at least one senator each and were entitled to one additional senator per each million inhabitants. [159] [160] [161]

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. [162]

Eligibility

Spanish citizens of age and with the legal capacity to vote could run for election, provided that they were not sentenced to imprisonment by a final court ruling nor convicted, even if by a non-final ruling, to forfeiture of eligibility or to specific disqualification or suspension from public office under particular offences: rebellion, terrorism or other crimes against the state. Other causes of ineligibility were imposed on the following officials: [163] [164]

Other causes of ineligibility for both chambers were imposed on a number of territorial-level officers in the aforementioned categories—during their tenure of office—in constituencies within the whole or part of their respective area of jurisdiction, as well as employees of foreign states and members of regional governments. [163] [164] Incompatibility provisions extended to the president of the National Commission on Markets and Competition; members of RTVE's board and of the offices of the prime minister, the ministers and the secretaries of state; government delegates in port authorities, hydrographic confederations and toll highway concessionary companies; presidents and other high-ranking members of public entities, state monopolies, companies with majority public participation and public saving banks; deputies and senators elected on candidacies subsequently declared illegal by a final court ruling; as well as the impossibility of simultaneously holding the positions of deputy and senator or regional legislator. [165]

Election date

The term of each chamber of the Cortes Generales—the Congress and the Senate—expired four years from the date of their previous election, unless they were dissolved earlier. [166] The election decree was required to be issued no later than the twenty-fifth day prior to the scheduled date of expiry of parliament and published on the following day in the Official State Gazette (BOE), with election day taking place on the fifty-fourth day from publication. [167] The previous election was held on 20 November 2011, which meant that the chambers' terms would have expired on 20 November 2015. The election decree was required to be published in the BOE no later than 27 October 2015, with the election taking place on the fifty-fourth day from publication, setting the latest possible date for election day on Sunday, 20 December 2015.

The prime minister had the prerogative to propose the monarch to dissolve both chambers at any given time—either jointly or separately—and call a snap election, provided that no motion of no confidence was in process, no state of emergency was in force and that dissolution did not occur before one year had elapsed since the previous one. [168] Additionally, both chambers were to be dissolved and a new election called if an investiture process failed to elect a prime minister within a two-month period from the first ballot. [169] Barring this exception, there was no constitutional requirement for simultaneous elections to the Congress and the Senate. [170] Still, as of 2026, there has been no precedent of separate elections taking place under the 1978 Constitution.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy announced the election date for 20 December 2015. Votacion Mariano Rajoy (20-12-2015).jpg
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy announced the election date for 20 December 2015.

In May 2014, the Spanish newspaper ABC disclosed that the government was considering whether it was possible for a general election to be upheld until early 2016, supported on an ambiguous legal interpretation on the date of expiry of the Cortes. [171] In September 2014, the media outlets Vozpópuli and El Plural further inquired on the possibility that the PP cabinet would be planning to delay the legislative term's expiry by as much as possible, not holding a new election until February 2016. [172] [173] However, legal reports commissioned by the government showed that the deadline for dissolving the Cortes and triggering a general election would be 26 October 2015, meaning that, with the election decree being published on the following day, an election could not be held later than 20 December. An opinion article published in Público on 8 December 2014 suggested that the probable date for the election would then be either on 25 October 2015 or on a Sunday in November, not counting All Saints' Day. [174]

After the 2015 local and regional elections, it was suggested that the general election would presumably be held on either 22 or 29 November. [175] [176] However, once it was confirmed that the government intended for the approval of the 2016 budget before the election, it was strongly implied that polling day would have to be delayed until December to allow for completion of the budgetary parliamentary procedure, with either 13 or 20 December being regarded as the only legally possible dates for an election to be held. [177] Finally, during an interview in Antena 3 on 1 October, Rajoy announced that the election would be held on 20 December, the latest possible date allowed under Spanish law. [178] Being held four years and one month after the 2011 election, this was the longest time-span between two general elections since the Spanish transition to democracy. [1]

The Cortes Generales were officially dissolved on 27 October 2015 with the publication of the dissolution decree in the BOE, setting election day for 20 December and scheduling for both chambers to reconvene on 13 January 2016. [158]

Outgoing parliament

The tables below show the composition of the parliamentary groups in both chambers at the time of dissolution. [179] [180]

Parties and candidates

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 at least one percent of the electorate in the constituencies for which they sought election, disallowing electors from signing for more than one list of candidates. Concurrently, parties, federations or alliances that had not obtained a mandate in either chamber of the Cortes at the preceding election were required to secure the signature of at least 0.1 percent of electors in the aforementioned constituencies. [186] Additionally, a balanced composition of men and women was required in the electoral lists, so that candidates of either sex made up at least 40 percent of the total composition. [187]

Below is a list of the main parties and electoral alliances which contested the election:

CandidacyParties and
alliances
Leading candidateIdeologyPrevious resultGov.Ref.
CongressSenate
Vote %SeatsVote %Seats
PP
List
Mariano Rajoy 2015j (cropped).jpg Mariano Rajoy Conservatism
Christian democracy

45.0%
[b]
187
46.8%
[h]
136Check-green.svg [188]
PSOE Pedro Sanchez 2015h (cropped).jpg Pedro Sánchez Social democracy 28.8%110
26.0%
[i]
54Dark red x.svg [188]
DiL Francesc Homs 2016 (cropped).jpg Francesc Homs Catalan independence
Liberalism

4.2%
[d]
16
4.1%
[d]
9Dark red x.svg [188]
unio.cat Josep Antoni Duran i Lleida 2015b (cropped).jpg Josep Antoni Duran i Lleida Regionalism
Christian democracy
Dark red x.svg
IUUPeC
List
Alberto Garzon 2015 (cropped).jpg Alberto Garzón Socialism
Communism

5.5%
[j]
85.1%0Dark red x.svg [188]
[189]
[190]
EH Bildu
List
Portrait placeholder.svg Iker Urbina Basque independence
Abertzale left
Socialism

1.4%
[k]
7
1.3%
[l]
3Dark red x.svg
UPyD Andres Herzog 2015 (cropped).jpg Andrés Herzog Social liberalism
Radical centrism
4.7%51.7%0Dark red x.svg
EAJ/PNV
List
Aitor Esteban 2016 (cropped).jpg Aitor Esteban Basque nationalism
Christian democracy
1.3%51.5%4Dark red x.svg [191]
ERC–CatSí Gabriel Rufian (election).jpg Gabriel Rufián Catalan independence
Left-wing nationalism
Social democracy
1.1%31.0%0Dark red x.svg
Nós Portrait placeholder.svg Carlos Callón Galician nationalism
Left-wing nationalism
Socialism

0.8%
[m]
2
0.9%
[m]
0Dark red x.svg [188]
[192]
CCa–PNC Ana Oramas 2019 (cropped).jpg Ana Oramas Regionalism
Canarian nationalism
Centrism

0.6%
[n]
2
0.4%
[n]
1Dark red x.svg
GBai
List
Portrait placeholder.svg Koldo Martínez Basque nationalism
Social democracy
0.2%1N/a [o] Dark red x.svg
Cambio/
Aldaketa
List
Portrait placeholder.svg Ana Luján Basque nationalism N/a
0.4%
[p]
0Dark red x.svg [193]
[194]
Podemos
List
Pablo Iglesias 2015 (cropped).jpg Pablo Iglesias Left-wing populism
Direct democracy
Democratic socialism
Did not contest [c] Dark red x.svg [188]
C's Albert Rivera 2015c (cropped).jpg Albert Rivera Liberalism Did not contestDark red x.svg [195]
[196]
ASG Portrait placeholder.svg Yaiza Castilla Insularism
Social democracy
Did not contestDark red x.svg
PP 2015.svg
PSOE 2015.svg
Podemos 2015.svg
UP 2015.svg

The People's Party (PP) chose to continue its electoral alliance with the Aragonese Party (PAR) under which it had already won the general election in Aragon in 2011. [197] In Asturias, an alliance with Asturias Forum (FAC)—former PP member Francisco Álvarez Cascos's party—was reached. Hastened by FAC's vote collapsing in the 2015 Asturian regional election, this was the first time both parties contested an election together since Cascos's party split in 2011. [198] An agreement with Navarrese People's Union (UPN) was also reached, after a period of negotiations in which the regional party had considered to contest the general election on its own in Navarre. [199] For the Senate, the PP also aligned itself with the Fuerteventura Municipal Assemblies (AMF) to contest the election in the Senate district of Fuerteventura. [200]

Meanwhile, the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) and New Canaries (NCa) both announced they would contest the general election together in the Canary Islands. NCa had already contested the 2008 and 2011 elections before: in 2008 they stood alone and won no seats, while in 2011 they won 1 seat as a result of an alliance with Canarian Coalition (CCa), alliance which they chose not to continue in 2015. [201] Extremaduran Coalition and United Extremadura broke up their coalitions with both PSOE and PP, respectively, and chose to contest the general together under a single joint list, Extremeños (Spanish for "Extremadurans"). [202]

In order to contest the general election, Podemos set up an extensive alliance system in several autonomous communities with other parties. After the negative results of the Catalunya Sí que es Pot alliance in the September Catalan election, Podemos, Initiative for Catalonia Greens (ICV) and United and Alternative Left (EUiA) reached an agreement with Barcelona en ComúBarcelona Mayor Ada Colau's party—to form a joint list to contest the general election in Catalonia: En Comú Podem (Catalan for In Common We Can). The coalition was aimed at mirroring Colau's success in the 2015 Barcelona City Council election at Catalan level; [203] if successful, it was planned to be maintained permanently for future electoral contests. [204] In Galicia, Podemos, Anova and United Left (EU) merged into the En Marea ticket (Galician for In Tide). Such a coalition, which represented a qualitative leap from the Galician Left Alternative (AGE) coalition in the 2012 Galician regional election, was aimed at channeling the results of the local "mareas" ("tides") that succeeded throughout Galicia's largest cities in the May local elections. The coalition also received support from those local alliances, such as Marea Atlántica, Compostela Aberta or Ferrol en Común. [205]

For the Valencian Community, the És el moment alliance (Valencian for It is Time) was created as a result of the agreement between Podemos and Compromís, with a strong role from Valencian deputy premier Mònica Oltra. [206] [207] United Left of the Valencian Country (EUPV) had also entered talks to enter the alliance, but left after disagreements with both Podemos and Compromís during negotiations. [208] Additionally, Podemos was to contest the general election in the province of Huesca alongside segments of Now in Common within the "Ahora Alto Aragón en Común" coalition (Spanish for Now Upper Aragon in Common). [209] In Navarre, all four Podemos, Geroa Bai, EH Bildu and I-E coalesced under the Cambio-Aldaketa umbrella for the Senate, aiming at disputing first place regionally to the UPN–PP alliance. The agreement was not extended to the Congress election, where all four parties ran separately. [193] [194]

In Catalonia and Galicia, Popular Unity (IU–UPeC) did not contest the election as such. The respective regional United Left branches joined En Marea and En Comú Podem, which supported Podemos at the national level. While a nationwide coalition between Podemos and IU had been considered, Podemos did not wish to assume IU's internal issues, and United Left candidate Alberto Garzón had refused to leave IU to integrate Podemos's lists. [210] On the other hand, environmentalist party Equo was successful at reaching an agreement with Podemos, accepting to renounce their label and integrating themselves within Podemos's lists. [211]

After the dissolution of the Convergence and Union (CiU) federation in Catalonia, Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC) joined Democrats of Catalonia and Reagrupament within the Democracy and Freedom alliance after the failure of talks with Republican Left of Catalonia to continue the Junts pel Sí coalition for the general election. [212] [213] CDC's former ally, Josep Antoni Duran i Lleida's Democratic Union of Catalonia (UDC), chose to contest the election alone despite losing its parliamentary presence in the Parliament of Catalonia after the 2015 regional election. [214]

Timetable

The key dates are listed below (all times are CET. The Canary Islands used WET (UTC+0) instead): [215]

Campaign

Party slogans

Party or allianceOriginal sloganEnglish translationRef.
PP « España en serio »"Spain seriously" [216] [217] [218]
PSOE « Un futuro/un presidente para la mayoría »"A future/a president for the many" [216] [217] [218] [219]
DiL « (Im)Possible »"(Im)Possible" [216] [217] [218] [220]
unio.cat « Solucions! »"Solutions!" [216] [217] [221]
IUUPeC « Por un nuevo país »"For a new country" [216] [217] [218]
EH Bildu « Bildu erabakira »
« Únete a la decisión »
"Join the decision" [216] [222]
EAJ/PNV « Lehenik Euskadi. Euskadi es lo que importa »"The Basque Country first. The Basque Country is what matters" [216] [217] [222]
UPyD « Más España »"More Spain" [216] [217]
ERC–CatSí « Defensa el teu vot »"Defend your vote" [216] [217]
Nós « A forza do noso pobo »"The strength of our people" [216]
CCa–PNC « Luchar por Canarias »"Fighting for the Canaries" [216]
GBai « Defiende Navarra. Nafarron Hitza Madrilen »"Defend Navarre. The voice of the Navarrese people in Madrid" [223] [224]
Podemos Main: « Un país contigo. Podemos »
En Comú: « El canvi no s'atura »
És el moment: « Justament és el moment »
En Marea: « Para mudalo todo, para que nada siga igual »
Main: "A country with you. We Can"
En Comú: "The change does not stop"
És el moment: "It is precisely the time"
En Marea: "To change everything, so that nothing remains the same"
[216] [217] [218] [225]
[226]
[227]
[228]
C's « Con ilusión »"With hope" [216] [217] [218]

Events and issues

Opinion polls heading into the campaign had shown the PP firmly in first position, with both PSOE and C's tied for second place and Podemos trailing in fourth. However, as the campaign started and election day neared, Podemos numbers had begun to rebound while C's slipped. Podemos centered its campaign around the slogan of "remontada" (Spanish for "comeback"), trying to convey voters a message of illusion and optimism. [229] After the Atresmedia televised debate on 7 December—in which Iglesias was said to have outperformed all other three with his final address [230] —and following a series of gaffes by C's leaders that had affected their party's campaign, [231] Podemos experienced a surge in opinion polls. By Monday 14 December it had reached a statistical tie with C's, and kept growing and approaching the PSOE, vying for second place, in the polls conducted—but unpublished by Spanish media—after the legal ban on opinion polls during the last week of campaigning had entered into force. [232] On 18 December, the final day of campaigning, Podemos staged a massive rally in la Fonteta arena in Valencia, in support of the Compromís–Podemos–És el moment coalition and as the closing point of their campaign. With a capacity of over 9,000 people, 2,000 were left outside as the interior was entirely filled. [233] [234] It was noted by some media as a remarkable feat, as the PSOE had been unable to entirely fill the same place just a few days earlier on 13 December. [235]

The most notable incident during the electoral campaign was an attack on Mariano Rajoy during a campaign event in Pontevedra on 16 December. At 18:50, while walking with Development Minister Ana Pastor in the vicinity of the Pilgrim Church, a 17-year-old approached him and punched him in the temple. The assailant was restrained by the Prime Minister's security guards and was subsequently transferred to the police station in the city. Rajoy, who was red-faced and stunned for a few seconds, continued to walk without his glasses, broken during the assault. [236] [237] The assailant turned out to be related to Rajoy's wife, as he was the son of a cousin of Elvira Fernández, and also a member of a family known for sympathizing with the People's Party. [238]

The following day, Rajoy attended a European Council meeting in Brussels, where Angela Merkel and other European leaders approached him showing their support to him after the assault. [239] During the meeting a camera recorded Rajoy, Merkel and other leaders discussing the electoral prospects of Spanish parties. Rajoy revealed to them that, according to PP internal opinion polls, Podemos was rising quickly and approaching the PSOE, to the point that there was the possibility of it becoming the second political force of the country. Merkel expressed concern about such an event. [240]

Election debates

A total of four debates involving the leaders of at least two of the four parties topping opinion polls (PP, PSOE, Podemos and C's) were held throughout the pre-campaign and campaign periods.

The first debate was organized by the Demos Association and held in the Charles III University of Madrid on 27 November. The leaders of the four main parties were invited, but in the end only Pablo Iglesias and Albert Rivera attended. [241] The debate was broadcast live on YouTube. [242]

The second debate was held on 30 November. Organized by El País newspaper, it was broadcast live entirely through the websites of El País and Cinco Días , the Cadena SER radio station and on the 13 TV television channel. Pedro Sánchez, as well as Iglesias and Rivera, attended the debate. Mariano Rajoy (PP) was also invited to the debate but declined the offer. [243] [244] According to the organizer, PP proposed the presence of Deputy PM Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría instead but it was refused, as she "was not the PP candidate for PM". [245] A poll conducted online immediately after the debate by El País to its readers showed Iglesias winning with 47.0%, followed by Rivera with 28.9% and Sánchez with 24.1%. [246]

A third, televised debate was organized by Atresmedia, held on 7 December and broadcast live simultaneously on its Antena 3 and laSexta TV channels and on the Onda Cero radio station. Rajoy had also been invited to the debate, but the PP announced that Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría would attend in his place instead. [247] The audience for the debate averaged 9.2 million, peaking at more than 10 million. [248] Online polls conducted immediately after the debate by major newspapers coincided in showing Iglesias winning, [249] while political pundits and journalists pointed on his strong performance. [250] [251] [252]

A fourth, final debate, organized by the TV Academy, was held on 14 December. The signal of the debate was offered to all interested media. Among others, nationwide TV channels La 1, Canal 24 Horas, Antena 3, laSexta and 13 TV broadcast the debate live. [253] Iglesias and Rivera were not invited to the debate, with only Rajoy and Sánchez participating. [254] The audience for the debate averaged 9.7 million. [255] A poll conducted by Atresmedia immediately after the debate showed 34.5% saying that "None of them" won, followed by Sánchez with 33.7%, Rajoy with 28.8% and "Both" with 3.0%. [256]

2015 Spanish general election debates
DateOrganisersModerator(s)   P Present [q]   S Surrogate [r]   NI Not invited  I Invited   A Absent invitee 
PP PSOE IUUPeC UPyD Podemos C's DiL unio.cat PNV AudienceRef.
18 October laSexta
(Salvados)
Jordi ÉvoleAANINIP
Iglesias
P
Rivera
NININI25.2%
(5,214,000)
[257]
21 November Cuatro
(Un Tiempo Nuevo)
Silvia IntxaurrondoS
Maroto
S
López
S
Sixto
P
Herzog
S
Errejón
S
Girauta
NININI3.2%
(449,000)
[258]
26 November Twitter Ángel CarmonaS
Maroto
S
G. Veracruz
S
Sánchez
P
Herzog
S
Errejón
S
De Páramo
NININI [259]
27 November UC3M Carlos AlsinaAANINIP
Iglesias
P
Rivera
NININI [260]
30 November El País Carlos de VegaAP
Sánchez
NINIP
Iglesias
P
Rivera
NININI [261]
6 December laSexta
(El Objetivo) [s]
Ana Pastor P
Casado
P
Saura
P
Garzón
NIP
Álvarez
P
Garicano
NININI7.2%
(1,268,000)
[262]
7 December Atresmedia Ana Pastor
Vicente Vallés
S
Santamaría
P
Sánchez
NINIP
Iglesias
P
Rivera
NININI48.2%
(9,233,000)
[263]
9 December TVE
(El debate de La 1)
Julio SomoanoS
Casado
S
Hernando
P
Garzón
P
Herzog
S
Errejón
S
De la Cruz
S
Puig
S
Surroca
P
Esteban
12.1%
(2,342,000)
[264]
14 DecemberTV AcademyManuel Campo VidalP
Rajoy
P
Sánchez
NININININININI48.7%
(9,728,000)
[265]
Opinion polls
Candidate viewed as "performing best" or "most convincing" in each debate
DebatePolling firm/Commissioner PP PSOE Pod. C's TieNoneBlue question mark (italic).svg
30 NovemberEl País [266] 24.147.028.9
7 DecemberRedondo & Asociados [267] 30.716.423.922.07.0
CIS [268] 18.38.931.312.02.716.210.6
14 DecemberAtresmedia [269] 28.833.73.034.5
CIS [268] 26.126.93.537.16.4

Opinion polls

OpinionPollingSpainGeneralElection2015.svg
Local regression trend line of poll results from 20 November 2011 to 20 December 2015, with each line corresponding to a political party.

Voter turnout

The table below shows registered voter turnout on election day, without including non-resident citizens.

RegionTime
14:0018:0020:00
20112015+/–20112015+/–20112015+/–
Andalusia 37.76%34.98%−2.7857.66%55.83%−1.8370.69%71.31%+0.62
Aragon 39.54%39.38%−0.1657.44%59.53%+2.0972.57%74.71%+2.14
Asturias 36.71%35.35%−1.3656.23%56.96%+0.7370.33%71.22%+0.89
Balearic Islands 35.17%35.02%−0.1550.37%52.18%+1.8162.20%65.20%+3.00
Basque Country 38.34%39.39%+1.0556.08%58.97%+2.8969.22%71.44%+2.22
Canary Islands 28.03%27.38%−0.6545.95%47.42%+1.4763.72%65.65%+1.93
Cantabria 40.44%40.34%−0.1061.53%62.31%+0.7875.37%76.00%+0.63
Castile and León 38.12%37.18%−0.9459.33%59.48%+0.1575.08%75.95%+0.87
Castilla–La Mancha 39.53%37.54%−1.9961.71%59.70%−2.0176.71%76.49%−0.22
Catalonia 35.55%35.24%−0.3153.21%56.62%+3.4166.83%70.98%+4.15
Extremadura 39.67%35.91%−3.7659.60%56.39%−3.2175.63%74.11%−1.52
Galicia 32.87%33.42%+0.5557.28%58.51%+1.2371.82%73.00%+1.18
La Rioja 41.88%40.70%−1.1859.73%60.63%+0.9075.88%76.66%+0.78
Madrid 39.61%40.35%+0.7461.33%63.37%+2.0476.03%77.76%+1.73
Murcia 42.50%38.51%−3.9963.36%59.29%−4.0775.53%72.96%−2.57
Navarre 39.11%39.53%+0.4255.82%59.00%+3.1871.34%74.28%+2.94
Valencian Community 43.95%43.25%−0.7062.73%63.51%+0.7875.50%76.58%+1.08
Ceuta 26.63%25.36%−1.2742.50%42.33%−0.1755.05%56.44%+1.39
Melilla 25.56%23.04%−2.5240.08%38.81%−1.2752.85%53.29%+0.44
Total37.88%37.01%−0.8757.65%58.37%+0.7271.71%73.20%+1.49
Sources [270]

Results

Congress of Deputies

Summary of the 20 December 2015 Congress of Deputies election results
SpainCongressDiagram2015.svg
Parties and alliancesPopular voteSeats
Votes%±pp Total+/−
People's Party (PP)17,236,96528.71−16.33123−64
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE)5,545,31522.00−6.7690−20
We CanIn CommonCommitmentIn Tide (Podemos)5,212,71120.68New69+65
We Can (Podemos)23,198,58412.69New42+42
In Common We Can (En Comú)3929,8803.69+2.5412+9
It is Time (PodemosCompromís)4673,5492.67+2.169+8
In Tide (PodemosAnovaEU)5410,6981.63+1.316+6
Citizens–Party of the Citizenry (C's)3,514,52813.94New40+40
United LeftPopular Unity in Common (IU–UPeC)6926,7833.68−1.812−6
Republican Left of Catalonia–Catalonia Yes (ERC–CatSí)604,2852.40+1.349+6
Republican Left of Catalonia–Catalonia Yes (ERC–CatSí)601,7822.39+1.369+6
Valencian Country Now (Ara PV)72,5030.01−0.020±0
Democracy and Freedom (DiL)8567,2532.25−1.928−8
Basque Nationalist Party (EAJ/PNV)302,3161.20−0.136+1
Animalist Party Against Mistreatment of Animals (PACMA)220,3690.87+0.450±0
Basque Country Gather (EH Bildu)9219,1250.87−0.502−5
Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD)155,1530.62−4.080−5
Canarian Coalition–Canarian Nationalist Party (CCaPNC)1081,9170.32−0.271−1
We–Galician Candidacy (Nós)1170,8630.28−0.480−2
Democratic Union of Catalonia (unio.cat)65,3880.26New0±0
Vox (Vox)58,1140.23New0±0
Zero CutsGreen Group (Recortes Cero–GV)48,6750.19New0±0
More for the Balearic Islands (Més)1233,8770.13±0.000±0
Communist Party of the Peoples of Spain (PCPE)31,1790.12+0.010±0
Yes to the Future (GBai)30,6420.12−0.050−1
El Pi–Proposal for the Isles (El Pi)12,9100.05New0±0
Citizens of Democratic Centre (CCD)10,8270.04+0.040±0
Blank Seats (EB)10,0840.04−0.360±0
Spanish Phalanx of the CNSO (FE de las JONS)7,4950.03+0.020±0
For the Left–The Greens (X Izda)7,3140.03New0±0
We Are Valencian (SOMVAL)6,1030.02New0±0
For a Fairer World (PUM+J)4,5860.02−0.090±0
Internationalist Solidarity and Self-Management (SAIn)4,4000.02−0.010±0
The Eco-pacifist Greens (Centro Moderado)3,2780.01New0±0
Land Party (PT)3,0260.01New0±0
Canaries Decides (LVUPALTER)132,8830.01+0.010±0
Libertarian Party (P–LIB)2,8540.01±0.000±0
Humanist Party (PH)2,8460.01−0.030±0
United ExtremaduraExtremadurans (EU–eX)142,0210.01+0.010±0
Spanish Communist Workers' Party (PCOE)1,9090.01New0±0
National Democracy (DN)1,7040.01±0.000±0
Feminist Initiative (IFem)1,6040.01New0±0
Regionalist Party of the Leonese Country (PREPAL)1,4190.01±0.000±0
In Positive (En Positiu)1,2760.01New0±0
United Free Citizens (CILUS)1,1890.00New0±0
Grouped Rural Citizens (CRA)1,0320.00New0±0
Navarrese Freedom (Ln)1,0260.00New0±0
Forward Valencians (Avant)1,0030.00New0±0
Málaga for Yes (mlgXSÍ)9340.00New0±0
Family and Life Party (PFyV)7140.00±0.000±0
Andalusians of Jaén United (AJU)7110.00New0±0
Independents for Aragon (i)6760.00New0±0
Democratic Forum (FDEE)4560.00New0±0
To Solution (Soluciona)4090.00New0±0
Social Justice, Citizen Participation (JS,PC)4060.00New0±0
Death to the System (+MAS+)3130.00±0.000±0
Liberal Party of the Right (PLD)2050.00New0±0
Welcome (Ongi Etorri)1100.00New0±0
Blank ballots188,1320.75−0.62
Total25,211,313350±0
Valid votes25,211,31399.11+0.40
Invalid votes227,2190.89−0.40
Votes cast / turnout25,438,53269.67+0.73
Abstentions11,073,31630.33−0.73
Registered voters36,511,848
Sources [270] [271] [272]
Footnotes:
Popular vote
PP
28.71%
PSOE
22.00%
Podemos
20.68%
C's
13.94%
IU–UPeC
3.67%
ERC–CatSí
2.40%
DiL
2.25%
EAJ/PNV
1.20%
EH Bildu
0.87%
CCa–PNC
0.32%
Others
3.21%
Blank ballots
0.75%
Seats
PP
35.14%
PSOE
25.71%
Podemos
19.71%
C's
11.43%
ERC–CatSí
2.57%
DiL
2.29%
EAJ/PNV
1.71%
IU–UPeC
0.57%
EH Bildu
0.57%
CCa–PNC
0.29%

Senate

Summary of the 20 December 2015 Senate of Spain election results
SpainSenateDiagram2015.svg
Parties and alliancesPopular voteSeats
Votes%±pp Total+/−
People's Party (PP)120,105,65030.31−16.45124−12
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE)214,887,75122.44−3.5347−7
We CanIn CommonCommitmentIn Tide (Podemos)12,244,41618.46New16+15
We Can (Podemos)37,494,55211.30New9+9
In Common We Can (En Comú)42,022,8363.05New4+3
It is Time (PodemosCompromís)51,734,3322.61+2.131+1
In Tide (PodemosAnovaEU)6992,6961.50+1.262+2
Citizens–Party of the Citizenry (C's)7,417,38811.18New0±0
United LeftPopular Unity in Common (IU–UPeC)72,372,6373.58−1.280±0
Republican Left–Catalonia Yes (ERC–CatSí)1,895,5012.86+1.816+6
Republican Left–Catalonia Yes (ERC–CatSí)1,887,6132.85+1.826+6
Valencian Country Now (Ara PV)87,8880.01−0.010±0
Democracy and Freedom (DiL)91,531,2592.31−1.786−3
Animalist Party Against Mistreatment of Animals (PACMA)1,036,7361.56+0.970±0
Basque Nationalist Party (EAJ/PNV)907,2671.37−0.096+2
Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD)620,7040.94−0.730±0
Basque Country Gather (EH Bildu)10564,5750.85−0.430−3
Change (Cambio/Aldaketa)11282,8890.43−0.021+1
We–Galician Candidacy (Nós)12279,3250.42−0.520±0
Vox (Vox)196,4570.30New0±0
Zero CutsGreen Group (Recortes Cero–GV)174,4810.26New0±0
Canarian Coalition–Canarian Nationalist Party (CCaPNC)13156,6360.24−0.181±0
Democratic Union of Catalonia (unio.cat)154,7020.23New0±0
Communist Party of the Peoples of Spain (PCPE)105,2500.16+0.040±0
Blank Seats (EB)88,8020.13−0.690±0
More for Mallorca (Més)1460,5270.09+0.010±0
Spanish Phalanx of the CNSO (FE de las JONS)37,6880.06+0.040±0
El Pi–Proposal for the Isles (El Pi)30,5570.05New0±0
For a Fairer World (PUM+J)20,1870.03−0.120±0
Citizens of Democratic Centre (CCD)20,1500.03+0.030±0
We Are Valencian (SOMVAL)19,9500.03New0±0
Internationalist Solidarity and Self-Management (SAIn)18,3770.03−0.010±0
Land Party (PT)10,1280.02New0±0
United ExtremaduraExtremadurans (EU–eX)1510,0650.01±0.000±0
Regionalist Party of the Leonese Country (PREPAL)9,9050.01±0.000±0
Humanist Party (PH)9,7890.01−0.050±0
The Eco-pacifist Greens (Centro Moderado)9,4400.01New0±0
Libertarian Party (P–LIB)7,7770.01±0.000±0
Canaries Decides (LVUPALTER)166,3370.01±0.000±0
United for Gran Canaria (UxGC)5,8850.01New0±0
Navarrese Freedom (Ln)5,7100.01New0±0
Feminist Initiative (IFem)5,6230.01+0.010±0
Forward Valencians (Avant)4,9480.01New0±0
In Positive (En Positiu)4,5480.01New0±0
National Democracy (DN)4,4560.01±0.000±0
Gomera Socialist Group (ASG)4,4350.01New1+1
We Are Menorca (Som Menorca)174,1290.01+0.010±0
Forward Badajoz (BA)4,0250.01New0±0
United Free Citizens (CILUS)3,1400.00New0±0
Independents for Aragon (i)2,7160.00New0±0
Andalusians of Jaén United (AJU)1,8360.00New0±0
Grouped Rural Citizens (CRA)1,6240.00New0±0
To Solution (Soluciona)1,5730.00New0±0
Family and Life Party (PFyV)1,5690.00±0.000±0
We (Nosotros)1,4720.00New0±0
Social Justice, Citizen Participation (JS,PC)1,3990.00New0±0
Merindades of Castile Initiative (IMC)1,2250.00New0±0
Democratic Forum (FDEE)1,2220.00New0±0
Aragonese Bloc (BAR)1,1830.00New0±0
For the Left–The Greens (X Izda)1,0090.00New0±0
Blank ballots [t] 979,3714.06−1.30
Total66,336,401208±0
Valid votes24,119,91396.78+0.48
Invalid votes801,7433.22−0.48
Votes cast / turnout24,921,65668.26−0.17
Abstentions11,590,19231.74+0.17
Registered voters36,511,848
Sources [180] [270] [271] [272] [273]
Footnotes:
Popular vote
PP
30.31%
PSOE
22.44%
Podemos
18.46%
C's
11.18%
IU–UPeC
3.58%
ERC–CatSí
2.86%
DiL
2.31%
PACMA
1.56%
EAJ/PNV
1.37%
Cambio/Aldaketa
0.43%
CCa–PNC
0.24%
ASG
0.01%
Others
3.79%
Blank ballots
4.06%
Seats
PP
59.62%
PSOE
22.60%
Podemos
7.69%
ERC–CatSí
2.88%
DiL
2.88%
EAJ/PNV
2.88%
Cambio/Aldaketa
0.48%
CCa–PNC
0.48%
ASG
0.48%

Maps

Aftermath

Outcome

The election results produced the most fragmented parliament in recent Spanish history. As opinion polls had predicted, the People's Party (PP) was able to secure first place with a clear lead over its rivals, but it lost the absolute majority it had held since 2011 in the Congress of Deputies. Its 123 seat-count was the worst result ever obtained by a winning party in a Spanish general election—previously been 156 seats in 1996. Its result was also slightly below the party's expected goal of reaching 30% of the vote. [274] The party's net loss of seats (64 fewer than in 2011) and vote share drop (minus 16 percentage points) was the PP's largest fall in popular support in its history, as well as the worst showing for a sitting government in Spain since 1982. Overall, it was also the worst result obtained by the PP in a general election since 1989, back to the party's refoundation from the People's Alliance.

The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) obtained its worst election result in recent history, with just 22% of the total party vote and 90 seats, well below Pedro Sánchez's target of at least 100 seats. [275] Losing 20 seats and nearly 7 percentage points to its already negative 2011 result, this was the first time since the Spanish transition to democracy that one of the two largest parties fell below the 100-seat mark. Overall, while able to hold on to its second place nationally in terms of votes and seats, it lost the second and first place to Podemos in 8 out of the 17 autonomous communities, and finished fourth in Madrid, the capital's district. It was able to narrowly win in Andalusia and Extremadura—which it had resoundingly lost to the PP in 2011—thanks to the PP vote collapse in those regions, but it lost in Barcelona for the first time ever in a general election, and its sister party, the Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC), was reduced to third party status in Catalonia after decades of political dominance.

The combined results for the top two parties was also the worst for any general election held since 1977, gathering just 51% of the total party vote and 213 seats, just slightly above the required 3/5 majority for an ordinary constitutional reform. The result was regarded as a loss for bipartisanship in Spain as a whole, as the era of bipartisan politics was declared officially over by newcomers Podemos and Citizens, as well as by both national and international media. [276] [277] [278]

Podemos, which contested a general election for the first time after having been founded in January 2014, obtained an unprecedented 21% of the vote and 69 seats together with its regional alliances, the best result ever obtained by a third party in a Spanish election. Coming short by 340,000 votes of securing its campaign goal of becoming the main left-wing party in Spain, it managed to secure second place in 6 out of the 17 autonomous communities and came top in another two—the Basque Country and Catalonia. This result was ahead of what initial pre-campaign and campaign opinion polls had predicted, and was in line with a late-campaign surge in support for the party. Citizens (C's) also had a strong performance for a national party in Spain, but its fourth place, 14% of the share and 40 seats were considered a letdown for party leader Albert Rivera, mainly as a consequence of the high expectations that had been generated around his candidacy. Pre-election opinion polls had placed C's near or above 20% of the vote share, and many also suggested a strong possibility of C's disputing second place to PSOE. Finally, it only came ahead of either PSOE or PP in Madrid and Catalonia. [279] [280] The party also found itself in a weaker political position than predicted, as the "kingmaker" position that was thought to go to C's under opinion polling projections finally went to PSOE, with the Congress's fragmentation resulting from the election meaning that neither the PP–C's nor the PSOE–Podemos–IU blocs would be able to command a majority on their own.

Government formation

Investiture
Congress of Deputies
Nomination of Pedro Sánchez (PSOE)
Ballot →2 March 20164 March 2016
Required majority →176 out of 350 X mark.svgSimple X mark.svg
Yes
130 / 350
131 / 350
No
219 / 350
219 / 350
Abstentions
  • CCa (1) (on 2 Mar)
1 / 350
0 / 350
Absentees
0 / 350
0 / 350
Sources [281]

Notes

  1. Total figures include results for En Comú Podem, És el moment and En Marea.
  2. 1 2 Results for PP (44.6%, 186 deputies) and FAC (0.4%, 1 deputy) in the 2011 Congress election.
  3. 1 2 ICV–EUiA (3 deputies and 1 senator), which contested the 2011 election within the IU–LV and Entesa alliances, joined the En Comú Podem alliance ahead of the 2015 election. Compromís (1 deputy and 0 senators) joined the És el moment alliance.
  4. 1 2 3 Results for CiU in the 2015 election.
  5. 1 UPyD seat was vacant as a result of Irene Lozano's resignation to join the PSOE on 16 October 2015. [182]
  6. 1 PP appointed seat remained vacant until 14 December 2016. [184]
  7. Juan Morano, former PP legislator. [185]
  8. Results for PP (46.3%, 136 senators) and FAC (0.5%, 0 senators) in the 2011 Senate election.
  9. PSC–PSOE contested the 2011 Senate election within the Entesa alliance.
  10. Results for IU–LV in the 2011 election, not including ICV–EUiA.
  11. Results for Amaiur in the 2011 Congress election.
  12. Results for Amaiur in the 2011 Senate election, not including Navarre.
  13. 1 2 Results for BNG in the 2011 election.
  14. 1 2 Results for CC–NC–PNC in the 2011 election.
  15. EH Bildu, GBai, I–E (n) and Podemos contested the 2015 Senate election within the Cambio/Aldaketa alliance.
  16. Results for EH Bildu (0.2%, 0 senators), GBai (0.2%, 0 senators) and I–E (n) (0.1%, 0 senators) in the 2011 Senate election in Navarre.
  17. Denotes a main invitee attending the event.
  18. Denotes a main invitee not attending the event, sending a surrogate in their place.
  19. Economic debate.
  20. The percentage of blank ballots is calculated over the official number of valid votes cast, irrespective of the total number of votes shown as a result of adding up the individual results for each party.

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