Cádiz (Spanish Congress Electoral District)

Cádiz is one of the 52 electoral districts (circunscripciones) used for the Spanish Congress of Deputies - the lower chamber of the Spanish Parliament, the Cortes Generales. It was first contested in modern times in the 1977 General Election. With 158,000 voters out of the total electorate of 939,000, Jerez de la Frontera is the largest municipality followed by Cádiz (105,000), Algeciras (86,000), San Fernando (75,000) and El Puerto de Santa María (65,000).^[1]

Boundaries and electoral system

Under Article 68 of the Spanish constitution ^[2] the boundaries must be the same as the province of Cádiz and under Article 140 this can only be altered with the approval of congress. Voting is on the basis of universal suffrage in a secret ballot. The electoral system used is closed list proportional representation with seats allocated using the D'Hondt method. Only lists which poll 3% or more of all valid votes cast, including votes "en blanco" i.e. for "none of the above" can be considered for seats. Under article 12 of the constitution, the minimum voting age is 18.

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Eligibility

Article 67.3 of the Spanish Constitution prohibits dual membership of the Cortes and regional assemblies, meaning that candidates must resign from Regional Assemblies if elected. Article 70 also makes active judges, magistrates, public defenders, serving military personnel, active police officers and members of constitutional and electoral tribunals ineligible.^[2]

Number of members

In the general elections of 1977, 1979 and 1982 Cádiz returned 8 members. That figure was increased to 9 members for the 1986 election. It has stayed at that figure since then.

Under Spanish electoral law, all provinces are entitled to a minimum of 2 seats with a remaining 248 seats apportioned according to population.^[3] These laws are laid out in detail in the 1985 electoral law. (Ley Orgánica del Régimen Electoral General) The practical effect of this law has been to overrepresent smaller provinces at the expense of larger provinces.

In 2008 Spain had 35,073,179 voters giving an average of 100,210 voters per deputy.^[4] In Cádiz the ratio was slightly above that at 106,691 ^[5]

Summary of seats won 1977-2008

Seats shown for the People's Party include seats won by their predecessors, the Popular Alliance and the Popular Coalition before 1989. Seats shown for United Left include seats won by the Communist Party of Spain before 1986.

Vote share summary 1977-2008

Note:Figures for the Andalusian party in 2008 are those for the Andalusian Coalition, which they were part of.

Results

The Popular Party (PP) overtook the PSOE in the 2000 election. This was the first time that the PSOE had failed to top the poll since the restoration of democracy. The PSOE regained the lead in 2004. In 2008 both main parties increased their vote share. In the case of the PP, this was their fourth largest increase overall resulting in a gain from the PSOE.

2008 General Election

Summary of the 9 March 2008 Congress of Deputies election results in Cádiz.

2004 General Election

Summary of the 14 March 2004 Congress of Deputies election results in Cádiz.

2000 General Election

Summary of the 12 March 2000 Congress of Deputies election results in Cádiz.

1996 General Election

Summary of the 3 March 1996 Congress of Deputies election results in Cádiz.

Source:^[6]

External links

• List of members by year

References

1. ↑ Number of voters by municipality
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Spanish Constitution
3. ↑ General features of Spanish electoral system
4. ↑ 2008 Spanish election
5. ↑ Cádiz 2008 election results
6. ↑ Interior ministry link to election results