District Four (Regional Assembly of Murcia constituency) explained
District Four was one of the five constituencies (Spanish; Castilian: circunscripciones) represented in the Regional Assembly of Murcia, the regional legislature of the Region of Murcia. The constituency last elected four deputies in 2015. It comprised the municipalities of Caravaca, Cehegín, Calasparra, Moratalla, Bullas, Pliego, Mula, Albudeite and Campos del Río. The electoral system used the D'Hondt method and a closed-list proportional representation, with a minimum threshold of five percent regionally.
Electoral system
The constituency was created as per the Statute of Autonomy for the Region of Murcia of 1982 and was first contested in the 1983 regional election. The Statute provided for sub-provincial divisions of the Principality's territory to be established as multi-member districts in the Regional Assembly of Murcia, with this regulation being maintained under the 1986 regional electoral law. Each constituency was entitled to an initial minimum of one seat, with the remaining 40 being distributed in proportion to their populations. The exception was the 1983 election, when constituencies were allocated one fixed member and one additional member per each 25,000 inhabitants or fraction greater than 12,500.[1] [2]
Voting was on the basis of universal suffrage, which comprised all nationals over eighteen, registered in the Region of Murcia and in full enjoyment of their political rights. Amendments to the electoral law in 2011 required for Murcians abroad to apply for voting before being permitted to vote, a system known as "begged" or expat vote (Spanish; Castilian: Voto rogado).[3] Seats were elected using the D'Hondt method and a closed list proportional representation, with an electoral threshold of five percent of valid votes—which included blank ballots—being applied regionally.[1] [2] The use of the D'Hondt method might result in a higher effective threshold, depending on the district magnitude.[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 ten days of the election call—fifteen before 1985—whereas groupings of electors needed to secure the signature of at least two percent of the electorate in the constituencies for which they sought election—one-thousandth of the electorate, with a compulsory minimum of 500 signatures, until 1985—disallowing electors from signing for more than one list of candidates.[2] [5] [6]
A 2015 legal amendment saw the abolition of the five constituencies and their replacement by a single multi-member district comprising all the municipalities in the autonomous community. The electoral threshold was also lowered from five to three percent.[7]
Deputies
Elections
2015 regional election
Summary of the 24 May 2015 Regional Assembly of Murcia election results in District Four| Parties and alliances | Popular vote | Seats |
|---|
| Votes | % | ±pp | Total | +/− |
|---|
| Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) | 19,758 | 38.86 | +4.98 | 2 | +1 |
| People's Party (PP) | 17,518 | 34.46 | –18.70 | 2 | –1 |
| Citizens–Party of the Citizenry (C's) | 4,787 | 9.42 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| We Can (Podemos) | 4,211 | 8.28 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| Winning the Region of Murcia: Plural Left (IU–V–RM–CLI–AS)1 | 2,699 | 5.31 | –3.22 | 0 | ±0 |
| Animalist Party Against Mistreatment of Animals (PACMA) | 298 | 0.59 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD) | 245 | 0.48 | –1.69 | 0 | ±0 |
| Citizens of Democratic Centre (CCD) | 243 | 0.48 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| Vox (Vox) | 131 | 0.26 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| Blank Seats (EB) | 74 | 0.15 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| Zero Cuts (Recortes Cero) | 58 | 0.11 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| Centre and Democracy Forum (CyD) | 37 | 0.07 | +0.03 | 0 | ±0 |
| Citizens' Democratic Renewal Movement (RED) | 24 | 0.05 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| Blank ballots | 758 | 1.49 | –0.13 | |
|
| Total | 50,841 | | 4 | ±0 |
|
| Valid votes | 50,841 | 97.96 | –0.69 | |
| Invalid votes | 1,057 | 2.04 | +0.69 |
| Votes cast / turnout | 51,898 | 70.18 | –4.80 |
| Abstentions | | 29.82 | +4.80 |
| Registered voters | | |
|
| Sources[8] [9] [10] |
| |
2011 regional election
2007 regional election
2003 regional election
1999 regional election
1995 regional election
1991 regional election
1987 regional election
1983 regional election
Notes and References
- Ley 2/1987, de 24 de febrero, Electoral de la Región de Murcia . Organic Law . 4 . . es . 9 June 1982 . 22 February 2017.
- Ley 2/1987, de 24 de febrero, Electoral de la Región de Murcia . Law . 2 . Boletín Oficial del Estado . es . 24 February 1987 . 22 February 2017.
- Web site: Reig Pellicer . Naiara . 16 December 2015 . Spanish elections: Begging for the right to vote . cafebabel.co.uk . 17 July 2017.
- Web site: Gallagher . Michael . 30 July 2012 . Effective threshold in electoral systems . https://web.archive.org/web/20170730092518/http://www.tcd.ie/Political_Science/staff/michael_gallagher/ElSystems/Docts/effthresh.php . dead . 30 July 2017 . Trinity College, Dublin . 22 July 2017.
- Real Decreto-ley 20/1977, de 18 de marzo, sobre Normas Electorales . Royal Decree-Law . 20 . Boletín Oficial del Estado . es . 18 March 1977 . 14 December 2019.
- Ley Orgánica 5/1985, de 19 de junio, del Régimen Electoral General . Organic Law . 5 . Boletín Oficial del Estado . es . 19 June 1985 . 28 December 2016.
- News: 23 July 2015 . Murcia cambia su ley electoral para pasar a ser una única circunscripción . es . . Cartagena . 9 February 2020.
- Book: Sierra Rodríguez, Javier . 2015 . El Sistema Electoral de la Región de Murcia: Balance y Perspectivas . 319–327 . es . Murcia . Universidad de Murcia. Facultad de Derecho . 6 December 2019.
- Web site: Regional Elections. Evolution of Turnout and Votes from the Main Political Parties . es . econet.carm.es . Regional Statistics Center of Murcia . 30 September 2017.
- Web site: 2015 Statistical Yearbook of the Region of Murcia. Volume I . es . econet.carm.es . Regional Statistics Center of Murcia . 7 December 2019.
- Web site: 2011 Statistical Yearbook of the Region of Murcia. Volume I . es . econet.carm.es . Regional Statistics Center of Murcia . 7 December 2019.
- Web site: 2008 Statistical Yearbook of the Region of Murcia. Volume I . es . econet.carm.es . Regional Statistics Center of Murcia . 7 December 2019.
- Web site: 2004 Statistical Yearbook of the Region of Murcia. Volume I . es . econet.carm.es . Regional Statistics Center of Murcia . 7 December 2019.
- Web site: Regional Assembly of Murcia election results, 13 June 1999 . 26 July 1999 . es . www.juntaelectoralcentral.es . Electoral Commission of Murcia . 30 September 2017.
- Web site: Regional Assembly of Murcia election results, 28 May 1995 . 21 November 1995 . es . www.juntaelectoralcentral.es . Electoral Commission of Murcia . 30 September 2017.
- Web site: Regional Assembly of Murcia election results, 26 May 1991 . 19 October 1991 . es . www.juntaelectoralcentral.es . Electoral Commission of Murcia . 30 September 2017.
- Web site: Number 150. Report-declaration of the Regional Assembly of Murcia election of 26 May 1991 . es . tcu.es . Court of Auditors . 6 December 2019.
- Web site: Regional Assembly of Murcia election results, 10 June 1987 . 27 June 1987 . es . www.juntaelectoralcentral.es . Electoral Commission of Murcia . 30 September 2017.
- Web site: Number 75. Audit report on the regularity of electoral accounting derived from the elections held on June 10, 1987 . es . tcu.es . Court of Auditors . 6 December 2019.
- Web site: 1986 Statistical Yearbook of the Region of Murcia . es . econet.carm.es . Regional Statistics Center of Murcia . 26 January 2019.
- Web site: Regional Assembly of Murcia election results, 8 May 1983 . 28 October 1983 . es . www.juntaelectoralcentral.es . Electoral Commission of Murcia . 30 September 2017.
