| Election Name: | 1984 Catalan regional election |
| Country: | Catalonia |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1980 Catalan regional election |
| Previous Year: | 1980 |
| Next Election: | 1988 Catalan regional election |
| Next Year: | 1988 |
| Seats For Election: | All 135 seats in the Parliament of Catalonia |
| Majority Seats: | 68 |
| Opinion Polls: |
|
| Registered: | 4,494,340 1.4% |
| Turnout: | 2,892,486 (64.4%) 3.0 pp |
| Election Date: | 29 April 1984 |
| Leader1: | Jordi Pujol |
| Party1: | Convergence and Union |
| Leader Since1: | 17 November 1974 |
| Leaders Seat1: | Barcelona |
| Last Election1: | 43 seats, 27.8% |
| Seats1: | 72 |
| Seat Change1: | 29 |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,346,729 |
| Percentage1: | 46.8% |
| Swing1: | 19.0 pp |
| Leader2: | Raimon Obiols |
| Party2: | PSC–PSOE |
| Leader Since2: | 12 July 1983 |
| Leaders Seat2: | Barcelona |
| Last Election2: | 33 seats, 22.4% |
| Seats2: | 41 |
| Seat Change2: | 8 |
| Popular Vote2: | 866,281 |
| Percentage2: | 30.1% |
| Swing2: | 7.7 pp |
| Leader3: | Eduard Bueno |
| Party3: | AP–PDP–UL |
| Leader Since3: | 10 November 1983 |
| Leaders Seat3: | Barcelona |
| Last Election3: | 0 seats, 2.4% |
| Seats3: | 11 |
| Seat Change3: | 11 |
| Popular Vote3: | 221,601 |
| Percentage3: | 7.7% |
| Swing3: | 5.3 pp |
| Leader4: | Antoni Gutiérrez |
| Party4: | Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia |
| Leader Since4: | 1982 |
| Leaders Seat4: | Barcelona |
| Last Election4: | 25 seats, 18.8% |
| Seats4: | 6 |
| Seat Change4: | 19 |
| Popular Vote4: | 160,581 |
| Percentage4: | 5.6% |
| Swing4: | 13.2 pp |
| Leader5: | Heribert Barrera |
| Party5: | Republican Left of Catalonia |
| Leader Since5: | 1980 |
| Leaders Seat5: | Barcelona |
| Last Election5: | 14 seats, 8.9% |
| Seats5: | 5 |
| Seat Change5: | 9 |
| Popular Vote5: | 126,943 |
| Percentage5: | 4.4% |
| Swing5: | 4.5 pp |
| Map Size: | 350px |
| President | |
| Before Election: | Jordi Pujol |
| Before Party: | CDC (CiU) |
| After Election: | Jordi Pujol |
| After Party: | CDC (CiU) |
The 1984 Catalan regional election was held on Sunday, 29 April 1984, to elect the 2nd Parliament of the autonomous community of Catalonia. All 135 seats in the Parliament were up for election.
The Parliament of Catalonia was the devolved, unicameral legislature of the autonomous community of Catalonia, having legislative power in regional matters as defined by the Spanish Constitution and the Catalan Statute of Autonomy, as well as the ability to vote confidence in or withdraw it from a regional president.[1] Transitory Provision Fourth of the Statute established a specific electoral procedure for elections to the Parliament of Catalonia, of application for as long as a regional electoral law was not approved, to be supplemented by the provisions within the national electoral law. Voting for the Parliament was on the basis of universal suffrage, which comprised all nationals over 18 years of age, registered in Catalonia and in full enjoyment of their political rights.
The 135 members of the Parliament of Catalonia were elected using the D'Hondt method and a closed list proportional representation, with an electoral threshold of three percent of valid votes—which included blank ballots—being applied in each constituency. Seats were allocated to constituencies, corresponding to the provinces of Barcelona, Gerona, Lérida and Tarragona, with each being allocated a fixed number of seats:[1] [2]
| Seats | Constituencies | |
|---|---|---|
| 85 | Barcelona | |
| 18 | Tarragona | |
| 17 | Gerona | |
| 15 | Lérida |
The use of the D'Hondt method might result in a higher effective threshold, depending on the district magnitude.[3]
The term of the Parliament of Catalonia expired four years after the date of its previous election, unless it was dissolved earlier. The President of the Government was required to call an election fifteen days prior to the date of expiry of parliament, with election day taking place within sixty days after the call. The previous election was held on 20 March 1980, which meant that the legislature's term would have expired on 20 March 1984. The election was required to be called no later than 5 March 1984, with it taking place on the sixtieth day from the call, setting the latest possible election date for the Parliament on Friday, 4 May 1984.[1]
The Parliament of Catalonia could not be dissolved before the date of expiry of parliament except in the event of an investiture process failing to elect a regional president within a two-month period from the first ballot. In such a case, the Parliament was to be automatically dissolved and a snap election called.[4]
The electoral law allowed for parties and federations registered in the interior ministry, coalitions and groupings of electors to present lists of candidates. Parties and federations intending to form a coalition ahead of an election were required to inform the relevant Electoral Commission within fifteen days of the election call, whereas groupings of electors needed to secure the signature of at least one-thousandth of the electorate in the constituencies for which they sought election—with a compulsory minimum of 500 signatures—disallowing electors from signing for more than one list of candidates.[5]
Below is a list of the main parties and electoral alliances which contested the election:
| Candidacy | Parties and alliances | Leading candidate | Ideology | Previous result | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes (%) | Seats | |||||||||
| CiU | Jordi Pujol | Catalan nationalism Centrism | 27.83% | |||||||
| PSC–PSOE | Raimon Obiols | Social democracy | 22.43% | |||||||
| PSUC | Antoni Gutiérrez | Communism Catalanism | 18.77% | |||||||
| ERC | Heribert Barrera | Catalan nationalism Left-wing nationalism Social democracy | 8.90% | |||||||
| AP–PDP–UL | Eduard Bueno | Conservatism Christian democracy | 2.37% | |||||||
The tables below lists opinion polling results in reverse chronological order, showing the most recent first and using the dates when the survey fieldwork was done, as opposed to the date of publication. Where the fieldwork dates are unknown, the date of publication is given instead. The highest percentage figure in each polling survey is displayed with its background shaded in the leading party's colour. If a tie ensues, this is applied to the figures with the highest percentages. The "Lead" column on the right shows the percentage-point difference between the parties with the highest percentages in a poll.
The table below lists weighted voting intention estimates. Refusals are generally excluded from the party vote percentages, while question wording and the treatment of "don't know" responses and those not intending to vote may vary between polling organisations. When available, seat projections determined by the polling organisations are displayed below (or in place of) the percentages in a smaller font; 68 seats were required for an absolute majority in the Parliament of Catalonia.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Turnout | EEC | Lead | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 regional election | 29 Apr 1984 | 64.4 | 46.8 | 30.1 | 5.6 | – | 4.4 | – | 7.7 | 1.2 | – | 16.7 | ||
| Iope–Etmar/El Periódico[6] | 12–17 Apr 1984 | 2,300 | 66–72 | 42.3 | 30.6 | 5.3 | – | 6.0 | – | 11.3 | – | – | 11.7 | |
| Sofemasa/La Vanguardia[7] [8] [9] | 11–13 Apr 1984 | 2,400 | 70 | 44.6 | 32.1 | 6.4 | – | 4.6 | – | 7.2 | 2.1 | – | 12.5 | |
| Metra Seis/El País[10] [11] | 9–12 Apr 1984 | 2,700 | 64 | 36.9 | 32.0 | 8.6 | – | 7.3 | – | 9.9 | – | – | 4.9 | |
| Avui[12] | 3 Apr 1984 | ? | ? | 40.2 | 23.6 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 16.6 | |
| Aresco/ABC[13] [14] | 9–12 Mar 1984 | 2,200 | ? | 41.0 | 29.1 | 6.9 | – | 6.3 | – | 13.9 | – | – | 11.9 | |
| Sofemasa/La Vanguardia[15] [16] | 21–23 Mar 1984 | 2,400 | ? | 33.7 | 38.8 | 8.2 | – | 6.2 | – | 8.8 | – | – | 5.1 | |
| 1983 local elections | 8 May 1983 | 67.4 | 25.5 | 40.4 | 11.5 | – | 2.9 | – | 9.5 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 14.9 | ||
| 1982 general election | 28 Oct 1982 | 80.8 | 22.5 | 45.8 | 4.6 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 0.2 | 14.7 | 0.9 | 2.0 | 23.3 | ||
| 1980 regional election | 20 Mar 1980 | 61.3 | 27.8 | 22.4 | 18.8 | 10.6 | 8.9 | 2.7 | 2.4* | 1.7 | – | 5.4 | ||
The table below lists raw, unweighted voting preferences.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | EEC | Lead | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 regional election | 29 Apr 1984 | 30.0 | 19.3 | 3.6 | – | 2.8 | – | 4.9 | 0.8 | – | 35.6 | 10.7 | |||
| CIS[17] | 23–25 Apr 1984 | 2,281 | 38.2 | 19.7 | 3.7 | – | 4.0 | – | 4.7 | – | – | 16.0 | 10.6 | 18.5 | |
| CIS[18] | 15 Apr 1984 | 2,385 | 28.0 | 22.4 | 2.8 | – | 3.6 | – | 3.2 | – | – | 29.2 | 9.0 | 5.6 | |
| Sofemasa/La Vanguardia[19] | 11–13 Apr 1984 | 2,400 | 27.9 | 20.1 | 4.0 | – | 2.9 | – | 4.5 | 1.3 | – | 24.8 | 10.6 | 7.8 | |
| CIS[20] | 10 Apr 1984 | 1,044 | 28.0 | 26.0 | 5.0 | – | 3.0 | – | 6.0 | – | – | 24.0 | 6.0 | 2.0 | |
| DYM/CIS[21] | 1 Apr 1984 | 2,271 | 26.5 | 20.9 | 3.6 | – | 2.9 | – | 3.6 | – | – | 35.9 | 4.6 | 5.6 | |
| Sofemasa/La Vanguardia | 21–23 Mar 1984 | 2,400 | 20.2 | 23.3 | 4.9 | – | 3.7 | – | 5.3 | – | – | 31.1 | 8.9 | 3.1 | |
| CIS[22] | 1 Mar 1984 | 2,466 | 25.2 | 22.4 | 3.9 | – | 2.7 | – | 4.2 | – | – | 33.2 | 6.5 | 2.8 | |
| Metra Seis/CIS[23] | 1 Jan 1984 | 2,101 | 27.0 | 22.0 | 5.0 | – | 2.0 | – | 4.0 | – | – | 31.0 | 7.0 | 5.0 | |
| CIS[24] | 1 Nov 1983 | 1,680 | 24.0 | 27.0 | 5.0 | – | 4.0 | – | 6.0 | 1.0 | – | 26.0 | 7.0 | 3.0 | |
| DYM/CIS[25] | 1 Sep 1983 | 2,198 | 19.3 | 35.7 | 5.0 | – | 3.4 | – | 3.2 | 0.6 | – | 22.8 | 8.7 | 16.4 | |
| 1983 local elections | 8 May 1983 | 17.0 | 26.9 | 7.6 | – | 1.9 | – | 6.3 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 32.6 | 9.9 | |||
| 1982 general election | 28 Oct 1982 | 17.9 | 36.5 | 3.7 | 1.6 | 3.2 | 0.2 | 11.7 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 19.2 | 18.6 | |||
| 1980 regional election | 20 Mar 1980 | 17.0 | 13.7 | 11.5 | 6.5 | 5.4 | 1.6 | 1.4* | 1.0 | – | 38.7 | 3.3 | |||
The table below lists opinion polling on the perceived likelihood of victory for each party in the event of a regional election taking place.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Other/ None | Lead | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIS | 23–25 Apr 1984 | 2,281 | 70.0 | 14.1 | 0.3 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 13.3 | 55.9 | ||
| CIS | 15 Apr 1984 | 2,385 | 41.4 | 22.0 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 1.9 | 0.2 | 32.7 | 19.4 | ||
| CIS | 10 Apr 1984 | 1,044 | 42.0 | 27.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 4.0 | – | 25.0 | 15.0 | ||
| DYM/CIS | 1 Apr 1984 | 2,271 | 42.1 | 22.7 | 2.2 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 0.2 | 29.7 | 19.4 | ||
| CIS | 1 Mar 1984 | 2,466 | 41.3 | 19.3 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 2.6 | – | 35.0 | 22.0 | ||
| Metra Seis/CIS | 1 Jan 1984 | 2,101 | 38.0 | 23.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 4.0 | – | 31.0 | 15.0 | ||
| CIS | 1 Nov 1983 | 1,680 | 33.0 | 33.0 | – | – | – | 6.0 | 28.0 | Tie | ||
| DYM/CIS | 1 Sep 1983 | 2,198 | 28.9 | 43.9 | – | – | – | 7.9 | 19.3 | 15.0 |
The table below lists opinion polling on leader preferences to become president of the Government of Catalonia.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Other/ None/ Not care | Lead | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIS | 23–25 Apr 1984 | 2,281 | 51.1 | 21.1 | 4.2 | 6.2 | 3.3 | 6.3 | 7.8 | 30.0 | ||
| CIS | 15 Apr 1984 | 2,385 | 40.9 | 20.5 | 3.4 | 4.7 | 2.5 | – | 28.1 | 20.4 | ||
| Sofemasa/La Vanguardia | 11–13 Apr 1984 | 2,400 | 36.9 | 25.5 | 9.1 | 10.3 | 6.3 | 11.9 | 11.4 | |||
| Metra Seis/El País[26] | 9–12 Apr 1984 | 2,700 | 36.1 | 22.1 | 7.8 | 7.8 | 4.3 | 21.9 | 14.0 | |||
| CIS | 10 Apr 1984 | 1,044 | 37.0 | 26.0 | 7.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | – | 21.0 | 11.0 | ||
| DYM/CIS | 1 Apr 1984 | 2,271 | 37.4 | 18.2 | 5.0 | 5.4 | 3.0 | 3.6 | 27.4 | 19.2 | ||
| Sofemasa/La Vanguardia | 21–23 Mar 1984 | 2,400 | 30.8 | 22.0 | 9.3 | 8.5 | 6.5 | 22.9 | 8.8 | |||
| CIS | 1 Mar 1984 | 2,466 | 34.8 | 16.2 | 3.2 | 4.4 | 3.5 | – | 37.9 | 18.6 | ||
| Metra Seis/CIS | 1 Jan 1984 | 2,101 | 50.0 | 26.0 | – | – | – | – | 23.0 | 24.0 | ||
| CIS | 1 Nov 1983 | 1,680 | 34.0 | 19.0 | 5.0 | 7.0 | 3.0 | – | 32.0 | 15.0 | ||
| DYM/CIS | 1 Sep 1983 | 2,198 | 32.1 | 16.5 | 6.1 | 8.7 | – | 1.5 | 35.1 | 15.6 | ||
| Parties and alliances | Popular vote | Seats | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | ±pp | Total | +/− | |||
| Convergence and Union (CiU) | 1,346,729 | 46.80 | +18.97 | 72 | +29 | ||
| Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC–PSOE) | 866,281 | 30.11 | +7.68 | 41 | +8 | ||
| People's Coalition (AP–PDP–UL)1 | 221,601 | 7.70 | +5.33 | 11 | +11 | ||
| Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia (PSUC) | 160,581 | 5.58 | –13.19 | 6 | –19 | ||
| Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) | 126,943 | 4.41 | –4.49 | 5 | –9 | ||
| Party of the Communists of Catalonia (PCC)2 | 68,836 | 2.39 | +2.09 | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Agreement of the Catalan Left (EEC)3 | 35,937 | 1.25 | –0.41 | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Spanish Vertex Ecological Development Revindication (VERDE) | 8,714 | 0.30 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Social Democratic Party of Catalonia (PSDC) | 6,768 | 0.24 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Workers' Socialist Party (PST) | 5,381 | 0.19 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Internationalist Socialist Workers' Party (POSI) | 3,533 | 0.12 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Revolutionary Workers' Party of Spain (PORE) | 2,694 | 0.09 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Communist Workers' Party of Catalonia (PCOC) | 2,593 | 0.09 | –0.39 | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Revolutionary Communist League (LCR) | 1,861 | 0.06 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Communist Party of Spain (Marxist–Leninist) (PCE (m–l)) | 1,834 | 0.06 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Spanish Democratic Party (PDE) | 1,110 | 0.04 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Party of Lleida (PLL) | 856 | 0.03 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Unity of Aran–Aranese Nationalist Party (UA–PNA) | 787 | 0.03 | New | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Communist Movement of Catalonia (MCC)4 | 164 | 0.01 | –1.21 | 0 | ±0 | ||
| Centrists of Catalonia (CC–UCD) | n/a | n/a | –10.61 | 0 | –18 | ||
| Socialist Party of Andalusia–Andalusian Party (PSA–PA) | n/a | n/a | –2.66 | 0 | –2 | ||
| Blank ballots | 14,313 | 0.49 | –0.17 | ||||
| Total | 2,877,516 | 135 | ±0 | ||||
| Valid votes | 2,877,516 | 99.48 | –0.02 | ||||
| Invalid votes | 14,970 | 0.52 | +0.02 | ||||
| Votes cast / turnout | 2,892,486 | 64.36 | +3.02 | ||||
| Abstentions | 1,601,854 | 35.64 | –3.02 | ||||
| Registered voters | 4,494,340 | ||||||
| Sources[27] [28] | |||||||
| Constituency | CiU | PSC | CP | PSUC | ERC | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | S | data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | S | data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | S | data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | S | data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | S |
| Barcelona | 44.3 | 41 | 32.3 | 29 | 7.6 | 7 | 6.1 | 5 | 4.1 | 3 | |||||||||
| Girona | 59.6 | 11 | 21.5 | 4 | 5.6 | 1 | 3.2 | − | 6.1 | 1 | |||||||||
| Lleida | 57.7 | 10 | 19.9 | 3 | 8.8 | 1 | 2.8 | − | 5.7 | 1 | |||||||||
| Tarragona | 48.1 | 10 | 26.7 | 5 | 10.2 | 2 | 5.3 | 1 | 4.6 | − | |||||||||
| Total | 46.8 | 72 | 30.1 | 41 | 7.7 | 11 | 5.6 | 6 | 4.4 | 5 | |||||||||
| Sources[29] [30] [31] [32] | |||||||||||||||||||
| Investiture Jordi Pujol (CDC) | |||
| Ballot → | 30 May 1984 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Required majority → | 68 out of 135 | ||
| Absentees | |||
| Sources | |||