The monarchy is hereditary. In the Senate (Senado), 208 members are elected by direct popular vote to serve 4-year terms and 51 members are appointed by regional legislatures. In the Congress of Deputies (Congreso de los Diputados) 350 members are elected by popular vote on block lists by proportional representation to serve 4-year terms.

Electoral Systems Snapshot

(Courtesy of International IDEA)

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Most recent elections

(courtesy of wikipedia)

Legislative elections were held in Spain on March 14, 2004. At stake were all 350 seats in the lower house of the Cortes Generales, the Congress of Deputies, and 208 seats in upper house, the Senate. The governing People's Party (PP) was led into the campaign by Mariano Rajoy, successor to outgoing Prime Minister José María Aznar. In a result which defied most predictions, the opposition Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE), led by José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, won a plurality of seats in Congress of Deputies, and was able to form a government with the support of minor parties.

The day after the election, Zapatero announced his intention to form a minority PSOE government, without a coalition, saying in a radio interview: "the implicit mandate of the people is for us to form a minority government negotiating accords on each issue with other parliamentary groups". Two minor left-wing parties, Republican Left of Catalonia and United Left, immediately announced their intention to support Zapatero's government.