Spanish General Election Results
March 2008 Voting Allows Prime Minister Zapatero a Second Term
Despite an economic downturn and rising unemployment, Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriquez Zapatero and his Socialist Workers' Party won Spain's 2008 General election.
Following campaign pledges to cut taxes and increase government spending, incumbent Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero’s Socialist Workers’ Party won the 2008 Spanish General election. This victory virtually guaranteed Zapatero a second term in office.
Voting Results
The final results of the March 9, 2008 General election (Cortes Generales), as reported by the Spanish Interior Ministry, are:
Congress of Deputies
Ninety eight political parties participated in the election, vying for seats in the Congress of Deputies. Only parties earning seats are listed:
- Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) - 43.64% (11,064,524)
- People's Party (PP) - 40.11% (10,169,973)
- United Left (IU) - 3.80% (963,040)
- Convergence and Union (CiU) - 3.05% (774,317)
- Union, Progress and Democracy (UPD) - 1.20% (303,535)
- Basque Nationalist Party (EAJ-PNV) - 1.20% (303,246)
- Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) - 1.17% (296,473)
- Galician Nationalist Bloc (BNG) - 0.82% (209,042)
- Canarian Coalition (CC) - 0.65% (164,255)
- Navarre Yes (NA-BAI) - 0.25% (62,073)
- Basque Solidarity (EA) - 0.20% (50,121)
- Aragonese Union (CHA) - 0.15% (37,995)
In Spain, Senatorial elections are based on partial block voting, where four seats are available, but voters can only select three candidates. Vote tallies are therefore unavailable for the Senate.
New Structure of Parliament
The new structure of Spain’s bicameral National Assembly is:
Congress of Deputies
- Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) - 169 (+5)
- People's Party (PP) - 154 (+6)
- United Left (IU) - 2 (-3)
- Convergence and Union (CiU) - 10 (0)
- Union, Progress and Democracy (UPD) - 1 (+1)
- Basque Nationalist Party (EAJ-PNV) - 6 (-1)
- Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) - 3 (-5)
- Galician Nationalist Bloc (BNG) - 2 (0)
- Canarian Coalition (CC) - 2 (-1)
- Navarre Yes (NA-BAI) - 1 (0)
- Basque Solidarity (EA) - 0 (-1)
- Aragonese Union (CHA) - 0 (-1)
Senate
- People's Party (PP) - 101
- Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) - 89
- Entesa Catalana de Progres (PSC-ERC-ICV-EUiA) - 12
- Basque Nationalist Party (EAJ-PNV) - 2
- Convergence and Union (CiU) - 4
- Canarian Coalition (CC) - 0
Regional legislatures will appoint the remaining 56 Senatorial officials.
Election Analysis
The Spanish General election revealed a strong change towards bipartisan politics, with every constituency being won by either the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) or the People's Party. Spain’s Interior Ministry estimates that 75% of eligible voters participated in the election.
Zapatero’s second term will not be easy. It begins with an economic slowdown, rising unemployment, a slumping housing market and an inflation rate at a 12-year high. At least the government posted a record budget surplus last year, which will help pay for Zapatero’s promised 400 Euro tax cut for all Spanish workers.
During the campaign, Mariano Rajoy, leader of the People’s Party, accused Zapatero of lying about his contacts with Basque terror group Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA). Rajoy pointed to the Prime Minister’s failure to negotiate a peace deal with the group during his first term in office.
The Spanish electorate were apparently not sufficiently persuaded to make a change, as PSOE gained an additional five seats in the Congress of Deputies. If Zapatero is unable to turn around the economy, lower unemployment and deal with ETA, expect a decidedly different electoral outcome in 2012.
References
“e2008 Elecciones A Cortes Generales” Spanish Interior Ministry 2008 General Election Website. 2008.
Gobierno de Espana Ministerio del Interior Official Website.
"Parties and Elections in Europe - Spain." Wolfram Nordsieck. 2008.
Sills, Ben. "Spain's Zapatero Reelected, Gains Seats in Parliament." Bloomberg.com. March 9, 2008.
