| Election Name: | 38th Federal Congress of the PSOE |
| Flag Image: | Logotipo_del_PSOE.svg |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 37th Federal Congress of the PSOE |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2014 Extraordinary Federal Congress of the PSOE |
| Next Year: | 2014 |
| Votes For Election: | 956 delegates in the 38th Federal Congress of the PSOE Plurality of delegates needed to win |
| Opinion Polls: |
|
| Turnout: | 955 (99.9%) 899 (94.0%) |
| Election Date: | 3−5 February 2012 |
| 2Blank: | Executive |
| Candidate1: | Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba |
| Colour1: | F2B95B |
| 1Data1: | 487 (51.0%) |
| 2Data1: | 723 (81.1%) |
| Candidate2: | Carme Chacón |
| Colour2: | 49A99B |
| 1Data2: | 465 (48.7%) |
| 2Data2: | Withdrew |
| Candidate3: | Blank ballots |
| Colour3: | DDDDDD |
| 1Data3: | 2 (0.2%) |
| 2Data3: | 168 (18.9%) |
| Secretary | |
| Before Election: | José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero |
| After Election: | Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba |
The 38th Federal Congress of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party was held in Seville from 3 to 5 February 2012, to renovate the governing bodies of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) and establish the party's main lines of action and strategy for the next leadership term. The congress was called after the PSOE suffered its worst defeat since the Spanish transition to democracy in the general election held on 20 November 2011. Previous secretary-general José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero had announced in April the same year he would not stand for election to a third term as Prime Minister of Spain, announcing his intention to step down as party leader after a successor had been elected.[1]
The result was a close race between the two candidates to the party leadership: Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba, the party's candidate for the 2011 general election and former first deputy prime minister and interior minister, and former defence minister Carme Chacón. The ballot saw Rubalcaba win by a 51.0% of the delegate vote (487 votes) to the 48.7% won by Carme Chacón (465 votes), with 2 blank and 1 invalid ballots.[2] [3]
The key dates are listed below (all times are CET):[4]
| Candidate | Age | Notable positions | Announced | Eliminated | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Elected | |||||||
| Candidate elected as secretary-general. | |||||||
| Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba | Deputy in the Cortes Generales for Cádiz, Cantabria, Madrid and Toledo (since 1993) First Deputy Prime Minister of Spain (2010–2011) Spokesperson of the Government of Spain (1993–1996 and 2010–2011) Minister of the Interior of Spain (2006–2011) Spokesperson of the PSOE Group in the Congress of Deputies (2004–2006) Secretary of Communication of the PSOE (1997–2000) Minister of the Presidency of Spain (1993–1996) Minister of Education and Science of Spain (1992–1993) Secretary of State of Education of Spain (1986–1992) | 29 December 2011 | Elected | [5] | |||
Proclaimed | |||||||
| Candidates who met the endorsement requirement and were officially proclaimed to contest the party congress. | |||||||
| Carme Chacón | Deputy in the Cortes Generales for Barcelona (since 2000) Minister of Defence of Spain (2008–2011) Minister of Housing of Spain (2007–2008) First Vice President of the Congress of Deputies (2004–2007) Secretary of Education, Universities, Culture and Research of the PSOE (2000–2004) First Deputy Mayor of Esplugues de Llobregat (1999–2003) City Councillor of Esplugues de Llobregat (1999–2003) | 7 January 2012 | 4 February 2012 | [6] | |||
Announced | |||||||
| Candidates who announced an intention to run for the primary election, but were rejected as a result of not meeting the endorsement requirement. | |||||||
| Luis Ángel Hierro Recio | Deputy in the Cortes Generales for Seville (2004–2007) | 8 January 2012 | 8 January 2012 | ||||
The individuals in this section were the subject of speculation about their possible candidacy, but publicly denied or recanted interest in running:
Candidates seeking to run were required to collect the endorsements of at least 10% of federal committee members and of between 20% and 30% of congress delegates.[16] [17] [18]
| Candidate | Federal Committee | Delegates | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | Count | |||||||
| Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba | 58 | 23.20 | 66.67 | 286 | 29.92 | 49.91 | ||
| Carme Chacón | 29 | 11.60 | 33.33 | 287 | 30.02 | 50.09 | ||
| Luis Ángel Hierro Recio | colspan="3" | |||||||
| Total | 87 | 573 | ||||||
| Valid endorsements | 87 | 34.80 | 573 | 59.94 | ||||
| Not endorsing | 163 | 65.20 | 383 | 40.06 | ||||
| Total members | 250 | 956 | ||||||
| Sources[19] [20] | ||||||||
Poll results are listed in the tables below in reverse chronological order, showing the most recent first, and using the date the survey's fieldwork was done, as opposed to the date of publication. If such date is unknown, the date of publication is given instead. The highest percentage figure in each polling survey is displayed in bold, and the background shaded in the candidate's colour. In the instance of a tie, the figures with the highest percentages are shaded. Polls show data gathered among PSOE voters/supporters as well as Spanish voters as a whole, but not among delegates, who were the ones ultimately entitled to vote in the congress election.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Other /None | Lead | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Congress election | 4 Feb 2012 | – | 48.7 | 51.0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 0.2 | 2.3 | |||
| Metroscopia/El País[21] | 4–5 Jan 2012 | ? | – | 21.0 | 44.0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 22.0 | 13.0 | 23.0 | |
| Sigma Dos/El Mundo[22] | 27–29 Dec 2011 | ? | – | 38.2 | 50.4 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 11.4 | 12.2 | |
| – | 33.7 | 35.3 | 11.0 | 4.9 | 3.4 | – | – | – | 3.3 | 8.4 | 1.6 | ||||
| Sigma Dos/El Mundo[23] [24] | 27 Nov 2011 | ? | – | 27.4 | 43.1 | 8.1 | – | – | – | – | – | 21.4 | 15.7 | ||
| Metroscopia/El País[25] | 30–31 Mar 2011 | 1,004 | 10.0 | 15.0 | 52.0 | 14.0 | – | – | – | – | – | 5.0 | 4.0 | 37.0 | |
| Sigma Dos/El Mundo[26] | 7–9 Mar 2011 | 1,000 | 12.9 | – | 44.8 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 31.9 | |
| Opina/Cadena SER[27] | 12–13 Jan 2011 | 1,000 | 26.7 | 11.8 | 27.4 | 12.6 | – | – | 8.3 | – | – | – | 13.0 | 0.7 | |
| Opina/Cadena SER[28] | 28–29 Oct 2010 | 1,000 | 36.0 | 12.4 | 20.5 | 13.0 | – | – | 9.7 | – | – | – | 8.4 | 15.5 | |
| Metroscopia/El País[29] [30] | 2 Jun 2010 | 506 | 35.0 | – | 8.0 | 4.0 | – | – | 3.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 7.0 | 38.0 | 27.0 | |
| Noxa/La Vanguardia[31] | 28–29 Dec 2009 | 807 | – | 8.1 | 11.0 | 8.8 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 2.2 | |
| Sigma Dos/El Mundo[32] | 23–29 Dec 2009 | 1,000 | – | – | 19.8 | 15.5 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 4.3 | |
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Other /None | Lead | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metroscopia/El País | 4–5 Jan 2012 | 1,000 | – | 18.0 | 26.0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 36.0 | 20.0 | 8.0 | |
| Sigma Dos/El Mundo | 27–29 Dec 2011 | 800 | – | 37.2 | 38.5 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 24.3 | 1.3 | |
| – | 22.4 | 26.0 | 14.4 | 4.1 | 3.2 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 3.9 | 26.0 | 3.6 | ||||
| Sigma Dos/El Mundo | 27 Nov 2011 | ? | – | 19.5 | 21.2 | 15.8 | 2.0 | 2.4 | – | 2.5 | – | – | – | – | 36.6 | 1.7 | ||
| Ikerfel/Vocento[33] | 4–22 Apr 2011 | 45,635 | – | 18.8 | 34.9 | 11.3 | – | – | 2.8 | – | – | – | – | – | 3.1 | 29.1 | 16.1 | |
| NC Report/La Razón[34] | 3 Apr 2011 | ? | – | 7.3 | 25.2 | 21.2 | – | – | – | – | 5.2 | – | – | – | 46.3 | 4.0 | ||
| TNS Demoscopia/Antena 3[35] | 2 Apr 2011 | ? | – | 10.4 | 40.5 | 2.3 | – | – | 1.1 | – | – | – | – | – | 3.3 | 42.4 | 30.1 | |
| Invymark/laSexta[36] [37] | 2 Apr 2011 | ? | – | 24.8 | 62.1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 13.1 | 37.3 | ||
| – | 11.3 | 44.0 | 5.9 | – | – | 1.5 | – | – | – | – | – | 16.3 | 7.5 | 32.7 | ||||
| Metroscopia/El País | 30–31 Mar 2011 | 1,004 | 8.0 | 17.0 | 42.0 | 16.0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 10.0 | 7.0 | 25.0 | |
| NC Report/La Razón[38] | 14 Mar 2011 | ? | – | 5.7 | 23.5 | 20.3 | – | – | – | – | 6.4 | – | – | – | 44.1 | 3.2 | ||
| Sigma Dos/El Mundo | 7–9 Mar 2011 | 1,000 | 7.3 | 10.1 | 26.9 | 12.6 | – | – | – | – | 11.9 | – | – | – | – | – | 14.3 | |
| Opina/Cadena SER | 12–13 Jan 2011 | 1,000 | 16.7 | 14.6 | 30.3 | 18.0 | – | – | 8.8 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 11.5 | 12.3 | |
| NC Report/La Razón[39] [40] | 22–24 Dec 2010 | 1,000 | – | 12.2 | 32.7 | 29.5 | – | – | 9.8 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 3.2 | |
| Opina/Cadena SER | 28–29 Oct 2010 | 1,000 | 21.3 | 13.7 | 24.5 | 19.7 | – | – | 10.3 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 10.4 | 3.2 | |
| NC Report/La Razón[41] | 17 Oct 2010 | ? | – | 15.9 | 24.5 | 27.9 | – | – | 16.2 | 6.5 | 9.0 | – | – | – | – | – | 3.4 | |
| Opina/Cadena SER[42] | 7–8 Oct 2010 | 1,000 | 22.1 | 14.2 | 20.0 | 20.6 | – | – | 11.1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 12.0 | 1.5 | |
| Metroscopia/El País | 2 Jun 2010 | 506 | 21.0 | – | 6.0 | 3.0 | – | – | 2.0 | – | – | 2.0 | 1.0 | – | 9.0 | 56.0 | 15.0 | |
| Noxa/La Vanguardia | 28–29 Dec 2009 | 807 | – | 5.0 | 7.0 | 11.0 | – | – | 3.0 | – | – | 4.0 | – | 3.0 | 29.0 | 38.0 | 4.0 | |
| Sigma Dos/El Mundo | 23–29 Dec 2009 | 1,000 | – | 6.7 | 15.5 | 17.9 | – | – | 3.2 | – | – | 9.2 | – | – | – | – | 2.4 | |
| Source | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Delegates | Percentage | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other /None /Unknown | Other /None /Unknown | ||||||||
| Congress election | 4 Feb 2012 | 956 | 465 | 487 | 4 | 48.6 | 50.9 | 0.4 | |
| Chacón's campaign[43] [44] | 3 Feb 2012 | 924 | 501 | 421 | 2 | 54.2 | 45.6 | 0.2 | |
| Rubacaba's campaign | 3 Feb 2012 | 924 | 413 | 506 | 5 | 44.7 | 54.8 | 0.5 | |
| Chacón's campaign[45] | 23 Jan 2012 | 956 | 488 | 360 | 108 | 51.0 | 37.7 | 11.3 | |
| Rubacaba's campaign[46] | 23 Jan 2012 | 956 | 390 | 540 | 26 | 40.8 | 56.5 | 2.7 | |
| Chacón's campaign[47] | 20 Jan 2012 | 786 | 416 | 290 | 80 | 52.9 | 36.9 | 10.2 | |
| Rubacaba's campaign | 20 Jan 2012 | 698 | 290 | 380 | 28 | 41.5 | 54.4 | 4.0 | |
| Candidate | Secretary | Executive | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | |||
| Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba | 487 | 51.05 | 723 | 81.14 | ||
| Carme Chacón | 465 | 48.74 | colspan="2" | |||
| Blank ballots | 2 | 0.21 | 168 | 18.86 | ||
| Total | 954 | 891 | ||||
| Valid votes | 954 | 99.90 | 891 | 99.11 | ||
| Invalid votes | 1 | 0.10 | 8 | 0.89 | ||
| Votes cast / turnout | 955 | 99.90 | 899 | 94.04 | ||
| Abstentions | 1 | 0.10 | 57 | 5.96 | ||
| Total delegates | 956 | 956 | ||||
| Sources[48] [49] [50] | ||||||