Madrid Assembly
Encyclopedia
The Madrid Assembly is the unicameral
regional legislature of the Autonomous Community of Madrid since the approval of the Madrid Charter of Autonomy in 1983.
It is elected every four years during the Spanish Regional and Municipal elections, as the Community of Madrid Charter of Autonomy does not recognise the right to call early elections (as in the Basque Country, Catalonia
, Galicia and Andalusia
), save for exceptional situations like the scandal that deadlocked the May 2003 Assembly and forced fresh elections in October 2003. According to the Charter, the Assembly is empowered to draw the Madrid Regional legislation, to control the Regional Government's actions and to elect the President of the Community of Madrid.
The Assembly meets in a purpose-built assembly hall in the district of Vallecas
of Madrid
inaugurated in 1998 specifically designed to host the Madrid Assembly.
in one constituency, which makes the Madrid Assembly one of the biggest parliaments in the world with one only constituency. In 2007, this fact moved President Esperanza Aguirre
to propose splitting the Community of Madrid into twelve constituencies of 9 to 15 AMs each. The alleged benefit was increasing the contact between statesmen and their electors, but the reform was rejected by the rest of parties in the Assembly on the grounds that it was not a pressing matter, and it would alter the composition of the assembly in favour of the most voted party. Eventually, the proposal was abandoned even though President Aguirre had the majority to pass it through the Assembly, because it would be defeated in the Cortes Generales
as it had to be done through a process of reform of the Charter of Autonomy.
Parties that obtain more than 5AMs can form a parliamentary group, in order to organise and participate in the debates and committees of the assembly. Parties that do not reach that number of seats will be part of the mixed group. Currently the threshold for obtaining seats in the Madrid Assembly is 5% of the total votes cast including votes "en blanco" i.e. for "none of the above", thus making it mathematically impossible for a party to obtain less than five seats.
Currently three parties are represented in the Assembly: the People's Party
, the Spanish Socialist Workers Party and United Left
all of which have their own parliamentary group. The last elections were held on 27 May 2007, and the result was as follows:
.
There is also a second, consultative body, the Spokespersons' Council (Spanish: Junta de Portavoces), which is made up of the leaders and spokespersons from each parliamentary group in the Assembly and has the right to be "heard" before the Bureau takes some decisions such as scheduling debates and votes. In the Spanish system, however, ruling parties usually do not hold a tight grip over the Parliament's schedule, nor do they use it to turn down the opposition proposals without debate: they are just voted down in committee or by the full house after the shortest debate allowed by the rules of order. Thus, while control of the Bureau and the Spokespersons' Council is definitely important, it is not a critical matter as it sometimes becomes in other systems.
Unicameralism
In government, unicameralism is the practice of having one legislative or parliamentary chamber. Thus, a unicameral parliament or unicameral legislature is a legislature which consists of one chamber or house...
regional legislature of the Autonomous Community of Madrid since the approval of the Madrid Charter of Autonomy in 1983.
It is elected every four years during the Spanish Regional and Municipal elections, as the Community of Madrid Charter of Autonomy does not recognise the right to call early elections (as in the Basque Country, Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, Galicia and Andalusia
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
), save for exceptional situations like the scandal that deadlocked the May 2003 Assembly and forced fresh elections in October 2003. According to the Charter, the Assembly is empowered to draw the Madrid Regional legislation, to control the Regional Government's actions and to elect the President of the Community of Madrid.
The Assembly meets in a purpose-built assembly hall in the district of Vallecas
Vallecas
Vallecas is a neighborhood of Madrid composed of two districts: Puente de Vallecas and Villa de Vallecas...
of Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
inaugurated in 1998 specifically designed to host the Madrid Assembly.
Membership
The legislature is currently made up of 120 deputies, elected all at once in closed party lists for terms of 4 years. Seats are allocated using the proportional D'Hondt methodD'Hondt method
The d'Hondt method is a highest averages method for allocating seats in party-list proportional representation. The method described is named after Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt who described it in 1878...
in one constituency, which makes the Madrid Assembly one of the biggest parliaments in the world with one only constituency. In 2007, this fact moved President Esperanza Aguirre
Esperanza Aguirre
Esperanza Aguirre y Gil de Biedma, Countess of Murillo, Grandee of Spain, DBE is a Spanish politician and the current President of Madrid...
to propose splitting the Community of Madrid into twelve constituencies of 9 to 15 AMs each. The alleged benefit was increasing the contact between statesmen and their electors, but the reform was rejected by the rest of parties in the Assembly on the grounds that it was not a pressing matter, and it would alter the composition of the assembly in favour of the most voted party. Eventually, the proposal was abandoned even though President Aguirre had the majority to pass it through the Assembly, because it would be defeated in the Cortes Generales
Cortes Generales
The Cortes Generales is the legislature of Spain. It is a bicameral parliament, composed of the Congress of Deputies and the Senate . The Cortes has power to enact any law and to amend the constitution...
as it had to be done through a process of reform of the Charter of Autonomy.
Parties that obtain more than 5AMs can form a parliamentary group, in order to organise and participate in the debates and committees of the assembly. Parties that do not reach that number of seats will be part of the mixed group. Currently the threshold for obtaining seats in the Madrid Assembly is 5% of the total votes cast including votes "en blanco" i.e. for "none of the above", thus making it mathematically impossible for a party to obtain less than five seats.
Currently three parties are represented in the Assembly: the People's Party
People's Party (Spain)
The People's Party is a conservative political party in Spain.The People's Party was a re-foundation in 1989 of the People's Alliance , a party led and founded by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a former Minister of Tourism during Francisco Franco's dictatorship...
, the Spanish Socialist Workers Party and United Left
United Left (Spain)
The United Left is a political coalition that was organized in 1986 bringing together several political organisations opposed to Spain joining NATO. It was formed by a number of groups of leftists, greens, left-wing socialists and republicans, but was dominated by the Communist Party of Spain...
all of which have their own parliamentary group. The last elections were held on 27 May 2007, and the result was as follows:
| Party | Votes | Vote % | Seats | Seats % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| People's Party People's Party (Spain) The People's Party is a conservative political party in Spain.The People's Party was a re-foundation in 1989 of the People's Alliance , a party led and founded by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a former Minister of Tourism during Francisco Franco's dictatorship... (PP) - Current government |
1,592,162 | 53.1% | 67 | 55.8% |
| Socialist Party of Madrid - Spanish Socialist Workers' Party Spanish Socialist Workers' Party The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party is a social-democratic political party in Spain. Its political position is Centre-left. The PSOE is the former ruling party of Spain, until beaten in the elections of November 2011 and the second oldest, exceeded only by the Partido Carlista, founded in... (PSM-PSOE) |
1,002,862 | 33.4% | 42 | 35.0% |
| United Left United Left (Spain) The United Left is a political coalition that was organized in 1986 bringing together several political organisations opposed to Spain joining NATO. It was formed by a number of groups of leftists, greens, left-wing socialists and republicans, but was dominated by the Communist Party of Spain... (IU) |
264,782 | 8.8% | 11 | 9.2% |
| Others/blank/invalid votes | 141.294 | 4.7% | 0 | 0% |
| Turnout / Totals | 3,001,200 | 67.3% | 120 | 100% |
Leadership
The Madrid Assembly's Leadership resides in the Bureau of the Assembly made out of a President (Speaker), three Vice Presidents who chair debate when the President is absent, and three Secretaries, elected in the first session of each newly elected Assembly. The Bureau is tasked with managing the Assembly schedule and interpreting its rules of order, even with the power to expel disrupting members from the sessions. Currently all parties are represented in the Bureau, which is dominated by the ruling People's PartyPeople's Party (Spain)
The People's Party is a conservative political party in Spain.The People's Party was a re-foundation in 1989 of the People's Alliance , a party led and founded by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a former Minister of Tourism during Francisco Franco's dictatorship...
.
| Position | Name | Party |
|---|---|---|
| President (Speaker) | Elvira Rodríguez | PP People's Party (Spain) The People's Party is a conservative political party in Spain.The People's Party was a re-foundation in 1989 of the People's Alliance , a party led and founded by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a former Minister of Tourism during Francisco Franco's dictatorship... |
| 1st Vice President | María Cristina Cifuentes | PP |
| 2nd Vice President | Francisco Cabaco | PSM-PSOE Spanish Socialist Workers' Party The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party is a social-democratic political party in Spain. Its political position is Centre-left. The PSOE is the former ruling party of Spain, until beaten in the elections of November 2011 and the second oldest, exceeded only by the Partido Carlista, founded in... |
| 3rd Vice President | Antero Ruiz | IU United Left (Spain) The United Left is a political coalition that was organized in 1986 bringing together several political organisations opposed to Spain joining NATO. It was formed by a number of groups of leftists, greens, left-wing socialists and republicans, but was dominated by the Communist Party of Spain... |
| 1st Secretary | Rosa María Posada | PP |
| 2nd Secretary | María Helena Almazán | PSM-PSOE |
| 3rd Secretary | Jacobo Beltrán | PP |
There is also a second, consultative body, the Spokespersons' Council (Spanish: Junta de Portavoces), which is made up of the leaders and spokespersons from each parliamentary group in the Assembly and has the right to be "heard" before the Bureau takes some decisions such as scheduling debates and votes. In the Spanish system, however, ruling parties usually do not hold a tight grip over the Parliament's schedule, nor do they use it to turn down the opposition proposals without debate: they are just voted down in committee or by the full house after the shortest debate allowed by the rules of order. Thus, while control of the Bureau and the Spokespersons' Council is definitely important, it is not a critical matter as it sometimes becomes in other systems.
Committees
The Assembly organises its work in different committees. Committees are constituted by the bureau of the Assembly on the advice of the Spokespersons' Council. The number and grouping of its members is also determined at the same time. The election of the membership of the committees is a role of the parliamentary groups that have to be always represented in the committees. The committees are directed by a Bureau composed of a Chair, a vice-chair and a secretary and each group is to designate a Spokesperson and an adjutant spokesperson for the committee, that will usually take care of that matters also in the plenary. For the current term committees are composed of 18 members distributed the following way: PP 10, PSOE 6, IU 2 or of 9 distributed in an equal way.External links
- Official site of the Madrid Assembly - In Spanish by default, also has an English version