Representation of the people Institutional Act. In force since 1st April 2015 Junta Electoral Central JUNTA ELECTORAL CENTRAL www.juntaelectoralcentral.es Carrera de San Jerónimo 36 28071 Madrid Tfno.: +34 91 390 69 91 - + 34 91 390 63 67 Fax: +34 91 429 77 78 www.juntaelectoralcentral.es Representation of the People Institutional Act (Official Gazette -BOE- no. 147, of June, 20th 1985. Investments errors in Official Gazette no. 17, of January 20, 1986.) Text in force as from September 7, 2011 JUAN CARLOS I KING OF SPAIN To all who see and understand the following, Let it be known: That the Spanish Parliament (Cortes Generales) have passed and I have given My Assent to the following Act. PREAMBLE I This present Representation of the People Institutional Act (Ley Orgánica del Régimen Electoral General, in abbreviation LOREG) is intended to provide a stable framework in which political decisions reflecting the right to vote can be taken in complete freedom. This is undoubtedly the essential aim of any electoral law in a democratic system. Democracy can only be truly deemed to exist when the sovereignty of the people is reflected in the affairs of government. Such an Act as the present one must therefore necessarily be regarded as a fundamental step towards the consolidation of a democratic State. The Spanish Constitution is unequivocally one of the most advanced constitutions in the Western world and it consequently lays the foundation for a mechanism enabling alternation in power to reflect the political diversity of our society, while fully preserving all other political liberties at the same time. These principles are embodied in the present Act, which governs the procedures for giving effect to the will of the majority of the people in the different representative bodies of the Spanish State. In this respect section 81 of the Constitution requires that an Institutional Act (Ley Orgánica) governing all election procedures be passed by the Cortes Generales. This makes it necessary on the one hand to gather in a unified and comprehensive legal body all the various matters falling under the constitutional notion of ”general 3 www.juntaelectoralcentral.es electoral law” (derecho electoral general), and to make provision on the other hand for each of the specific electoral processes within the field of State jurisdiction. All this requires firstly the adoption of a set of provisions to replace the Royal Decree- Act (Real Decreto-Ley) of 1977, still in force, which has proved adequate during the first stage of the transition of our country towards democracy. This replacement is not however a drastic change, since the very text of the Constitution had al4ready embodied the essential elements of the electoral system laid down by the Royal Decree-Act. Secondly this Act incorporates rules governing specific elections -already adopted by both Houses of Parliament-. In the area of local government elections, for instance, the Act basically follows the regulation laid down in Act 39/1978, still in force (as amended in Act 6/1983), by the resent Parliament. The same applies to causes of ineligibility and disqualification for members of Congress and Senators in this Act, which are the same as those provided for in the Disqualifications for Members of Congress and Senators Institutional Bill, upon which there has already been a vote in both Houses. Lastly the new electoral regulation makes its comprehensive approach by drawing on the experience of a democratic process in motion since 1977 and by adding the technical improvements that are needed to make up for the gaps that have become apparent with the consolidation of our democratic institutions. II The Act is therefore inspired by this twofold purpose: to fulfill a constitutional obligation that cannot be postponed and to fulfill it with the comprehensive approach imposed by the Constitution itself. The Representation of the People Institutional Act has been framed for the achievement of these two very aims, by drawing a fundamental division between provisions that apply generally to any elections by direct universal suffrage and those designed for the different types of political elections, as an adaptation to the peculiar features of the various electoral processes which the State must legally regulate. The Constitution makes it a duty of the State in the first place to implement Section 23, which refers to one of the fundamental rights in the setting-up of a law-abiding State: the regulation of active and passive suffrage for all citizens, and secondly, by providing in Section 81 for a mandatory General Electoral Institutional Act, it broadens the field of activity to be covered by the State; that is to say, it makes the State’s activity necessary beyond the mere guarantee of suffrage, since, as already declared by the Constitutional Court, this heading must be construed as covering the essential and nuclear elements of the electoral system. Besides, under Section 149.1.1 of the Constitution, the State has exclusive jurisdiction legally to define the basic conditions guaranteeing equal exercise by all Spaniards of their constitutional rights, among which the right to vote, as laid down in Section 23. The Act’s approach is founded on the greatest respect for the powers of Self- Governing regional Communities, as it devises a system that can be not only 4 www.juntaelectoralcentral.es developed, but also amended or replaced in many features by the Self-Governing Communities’ own legislation. The Introductory Part defines the scope of the Act, in conformity with the guiding principles in the foregoing paragraphs. Part I, under the heading “Common provisions for elections by direct universal franchise”, covers a set of chapters providing in the first place for direct implementation of Section 23 of the Constitution, for instance the first and second chapters governing the right to vote and to be a candidate. In the second place, it deals with matters which are essential elements of electoral law, e.g. some aspects of election procedure. It finally deals with election offences. The provisions in this Part are undoubtedly the hard core of the Act, an orientation point for the rest of its contents and also the basis of the Self-Governing Communities’ legislative activity. There are noteworthy innovations in this Part, among them the Electoral Register system, the regulation of electoral expenses and subsidies, the procedure for their control and the judicial guarantees for effective exercise of active and passive suffrage. Part II contains the specific provisions for election of Members of Congress and Senators, thoroughly implementing the principles enshrined in the Constitution: definition of each province as the electoral constituency and its entitlement to a minimum initial representation, the rule of proportional representation and the set of causes of ineligibility and disqualification for Members of Congress and Senators. On the basis of these constitutional premises, which were also taken into account in the Royal Decree-Act of 1977, the Act sets out to bring some technical corrections and improvements that can be conducive to a better functioning of the whole system. Part III contains the specific provisions for local elections. It puts together the contents of Act 39/1978 and amendments to it by Act No. 6/1983, and it also introduces some innovations such as the possibility of and procedure for the dismissal of Mayors by Councillors, something which has already been declared lawful by the Constitutional Court. Parts IV and V deal with elections to the Insular Councils of the Canary Islands and to Provincial Councils. The present system has been maintained in both cases. III An electoral system in a democratic State must guarantee as its very nucleus the free expression of the people’s sovereignty, a general freedom which is attended nowadays by a set of other liberties, such as freedom of speech, freedom of information, freedom of assembly, freedom of association, etc. The immediate effect of this Act can only be therefore to entrench the liberties referred to above, thus preventing any obstacles that may arise from the social structure from interfering with what is the peak point in the exercise of political freedom. The framework of free access to participation in political affairs designed by this Act is an irreversible landmark of our history and the most conspicuous sign of our living together in a democratic society. 5 www.juntaelectoralcentral.es INTRODUCTORY Section 1. Purpose of the Act 1. This present Act shall apply to: a) Elections of members of the Congress of Deputies (Diputados) and senators (Senadores) without prejudice to the provisions of Self-government Statutes for designation of the senators referred to in Section 65.9 of the Constitution; b) Elections of members of local assemblies and c) Election of members of the European Parliament. 2. It shall likewise apply in the terms provided in the First Additional Provision of this Act, to elections to the Self-governing Communities’ Legislative Assemblies, as a surrogate to the Communities’ legislation in this area. PART I COMMON PROVISIONS FOR ELECTIONS BY DIRECT UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE Chapter I Franchise Section 2. Right to vote (Derecho de sufragio activo) 1. All Spanish citizens of age not falling within any of the cases contemplated in the next article shall have the right to vote. 2. Exercise of said right requires prior registration in the electoral register in force on the relevant date 3. Registration in the Register of Resident Spanish Citizens shall be necessary for the exercise of the right of vote at municipal elections, including those to Canarian Councils, Insular Councils, the Valley of Aran General Council and General Assemblies. Section 3. Disenfranchisement 1. The following have no right to vote: a) Persons convicted by a final court’s decision to forfeiture of the right to vote as the main or as an accessory penalty during the term of the conviction.