Generic Courts ( Spanish Cortes Generales / Cortes Españolas ) - a representative body and the carrier of the legislative power ( parliament ) of Spain . The Spanish Constitution, in accordance with the principle of separation of powers, defines and regulates three main branches: legislative, executive and judicial. The first is entrusted to parliament, the second to the government, and the third to the court [1] .
| General Cortes of Spain | |
|---|---|
| isp. Cortes generales de España | |
 | |
| Type of | |
| Type of | bicameral parliament |
| Chambers | Senate (top) Congress of Deputies (lower) |
| Manual | |
| President of the Senate | Pio Garcia-Escudero, People's Party since 2011 |
| President of the Congress of Deputies | Ana Pastor Julian , People's Party from 2016 |
| Structure | |
| Members | 616 266 senators 350 deputies |
| Elections | |
| Recent election | June 26, 2016 |
| Recent election | June 26, 2016 |
| Site | |
| Congress | |
Content
Composition
Parliament includes two chambers:
- Congress of Deputies ( Spanish Congreso de los Diputados )
- Senate ( Spanish Senado de España )
Both chambers are formed simultaneously on the basis of free, universal, equal and direct suffrage by secret ballot. However, when choosing deputies, the system of proportional representation is applied, and the election of senators is held by the majority system. Active and passive suffrage belongs to all Spaniards who have reached the age of 18 and have full political rights. Spaniards who live outside of Spain also have voting rights. The term of office of both houses of parliament is four years.
Parliamentary History
Elections
Congressional Elections
Spanish law did not establish a permanent quantitative composition of the chamber. Therefore, in accordance with the Spanish Constitution, from 300 to 400 deputies can be elected to the “Congress of Deputies” using the 3% barrier.
As a rule, in recent years, 350 people are elected to the “Congress of Deputies”, and 208 senators are elected to the “Senate”, and 46 are appointed by the legislative assemblies of autonomous communities.
The constituency is each of the 50 Spanish provinces . The cities of Ceuta and Melilla , located on the northern coast of Africa and belonging to the Spanish Crown, elect one deputy each to the Congress. The Organic Universal Electoral Regime Act of June 19, 1985 [2] (last revised in 1995) and the Spanish Constitution distribute the total number of deputies in such a way as to ensure at least one representative from each district and distribute other seats in proportion to the population. Elections may be held no earlier than thirty days and no later than sixty days after the end of the term of office of the parliament.
Senate elections
Four senators are elected from each province, two from the cities of Ceuta and Melilla.
Elections of senators are held by the majority system. 4 senators each - from provinces ( multi-member majoritarian district ), 3 senators choose Canary Islands , Majorca islands, Tenerife islands, 2 senators each - the cities of Ceuta and Melilla, 1 each - the islands except those mentioned above.
As for the island provinces, each of them, which has a Cabildo or an island council, constitutes a constituency for the election of senators. The quota of representation in the Senate of island territories is set out in paragraph 3 of Art. 69 of the Constitution.
Thus, from each of the major islands (Gran Canaria, Mallorca, Tenerife), three senators are elected, and from other islands or their groups (Ibiza, Formentera, Menorca, Fuerteventura, Homer, Hierro, Lanzarote and La Palma) to the senator. In addition, part of the senators is appointed by the legislative assembly of the so-called "autonomous communities" (one from each such "community" and one more from each million citizens living in their territory).
Notes
- ↑ Pelegrí Girón. Compendio de Derecho constitucional y administrativo / Escuela de Hacienda Pública. - 1987. - ISBN 84-7196-696-7 .
- ↑ Ley Orgánica 5/1985, de 19 de Junio, del régimen electoral general .. CAPÍTULO III . www.juntaelectoralcentral.es. The appeal date is April 2, 2016.