See also: List of current presidents of the autonomous communities of Spain.
In Spain, a president of an Autonomous Community serves as the chief executive officer in each of the seventeen Autonomous communities and in the two Autonomous cities, where they receive the name of "Mayor-Presidents". As such, regional presidents are responsible for implementing regional laws and overseeing the operation of the state executive branch. As regional leaders, governors advance and pursue new and revised policies and programs using a variety of tools, among them executive laws, executive budgets, and legislative proposals.
The figure of a vice-president is not regulated, and as such, each regional president can decide whether to appoint them or not.
Autonomous communities in Spain have their own set of devolved powers; typically those communities with stronger local nationalism have more powers, and this type of devolution has been called asymmetrical.[1] Some scholars have referred to the resulting system as a federal system in all but name, or a "federation without federalism". Spain is not a federation, but a decentralized unitary state. While sovereignty is vested in the nation as a whole, represented in the central institutions of government, the nation has, in variable degrees, devolved power to the communities, which, in turn, exercise their right to self-government within the limits set forth in the constitution and their autonomous statutes.[2]
Each Autonomous community has its own Statute of Autonomy, and government, consisting of three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial.
The president heads the government's executive branch in each Autonomous community or city and has control over government budgeting and a role in legislation.[3] Spanish regional presidents do not have term limits and as such, they can serve indefinitely.
All regional presidents are indirectly elected, as it is the role of the regional parliaments to appoint them following regional elections, if they can command a majority.
Presidents of Andalusia, the Basque Country, Catalonia and Galicia, whose Statutes of Autonomy and election laws were created by a special fast procedure,[4] can also select the actual election date and trigger snap elections, and have frequently done so, particularly in the Basque Country and Catalonia. The Andalusian elections are usually set to coincide with the Spanish general elections, but again, there is no requisite to that effect in the Andalusian legislation. In the rest of Autonomies, elections are fixed to a certain common date, which is currently "the fourth Sunday of May each four years".[5]
There are currently 13 Autonomous communities and cities with a People's Party president, 4 Autonomous communities with a Socialist president and 2 with regionalist or nationalist presidents.
For each term, presidents serve four years in office. All members of regional parliaments are elected for four-year terms, but the president of the community has the faculty to dissolve the legislature and call for early elections. Nonetheless, in all communities except for the Basque Country, Catalonia, Galicia, and Andalusia elections are held the last Sunday of May every four years, concurrent with municipal elections in all Spain.
The longest-serving current and continuously president is Emiliano García-Page from Castilla-La Mancha, serving since July 2015.
The longest-serving regional president of all time was Juan Carlos Rodríguez Ibarra of Extremadura, who was elected in 1983 and lasted until 2007, when he returned to his position as professor in the University of Extremadura.
The shortest-serving president of all time was Antonio Rodríguez Basulto of La Rioja, who served for 126 days between January 25 and May 30, 1983.
The oldest current regional president is Alfonso Fernández Mañueco from Castile and León, born in 29 April 1965. The youngest current regional president is Fernando López Miras of the Region of Murcia who was born on 4 October 1983.
The youngest regional president to serve was Joan Lerma of the Valencian Community (born in 1951), who became President of the Valencian government in 1982, at the age of 31.
As of July 2023, there are 14 male regional presidents and 5 female regional presidents: Marga Prohens of the Balearic Islands, María Guardiola of Extremadura, Isabel Díaz Ayuso of the Community of Madrid, María José Sáenz de Buruaga of Cantabria and María Chivite of Navarre. Of those, Chivite belongs to the social-democratic Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, while Prohens, Guardiola, Sáenz de Buruaga and Díaz Ayuso are from the conservative People's Party.
Seventeen women have served or are currently serving as regional presidents, including three in an acting capacity. Asturias, the Basque Country, the Canary Islands, Castile and León, Catalonia, Ceuta, Galicia, Melilla and the Valencian Community have never had a female regional president.
The first female regional president was María Antonia Martínez García of the Region of Murcia, who was elected on May 3, 1993, succeeding Carlos Collado Mena.
The Region of Murcia is the only Autonomous community to have had female regional presidents from both major parties, although conservative María Dolores Pagán Arce served only in the acting capacity for a short time. Navarre was the first region where a woman followed another woman as regional president, with Uxue Barkos succeeding Yolanda Barcina (they were from different parties). Uxue Barkos was also succeeded by another woman, current President María Chivite. The Community of Madrid and Navarre have had the most female regional presidents with a total of three, and Navarre is also the first region to have three women in a row serve as president.
The total of five female regional presidents serving from June 25 to July 1, 2015 and since July 14, 2023 at the same time is the current record in Spain.
There is currently one regional LGBT president, Adrián Barbón from Asturias.[6] In addition, former president of the Canary Islands Jerónimo Saavedra, recognized his homosexuality years after leaving the position.[7] At the moment they are the only presidents or former regional presidents to have declared so.
As no region has laws that establish the need to be born in the region in order to reach the presidency, 21 of the regional presidents were born outside the Autonomous community where they served:
Juan Manuel Moreno (Andalusia) is the only current regional president born outside of the Autonomous community he governs.
Apart from those, Francesc Antich Oliver, from the Balearic Islands, was born in Caracas, Venezuela, although he holds Spanish nationality, and Carlos Collado Mena, from Murcia, was born in Orléans, France, from exiled Spaniards during the Spanish Civil War.
Although Spain is a still predominantly Catholic country, the latest studies show an increasing decline of religious beliefs in Spanish society, with the latest CIS study conducted in May 2021 indicating that compared to 58.2% of the Spanish population that declare themselves Catholic, 37.5% declare themselves either atheist, agnostic or non-believer. Currently, the presidents of Andalusia, Asturias, the Basque Country,[8] Extremadura,[9] Galicia and Murcia declare themselves as Catholics, while the presidents of Aragon,[10] the Balearic Islands, Cantabria,[11] Catalonia[12] and the Community of Madrid[13] declare themselves to be either atheist or non-believers.
The highest salary currently being accepted is that of Catalan President Salvador Illa at €136,177.50. The lowest salary is that of Cantabrian President María José Sainz de Buruaga at €65,555.09.[14]
Seven autonomies (Aragon, Basque Country, Catalonia, La Rioja, Madrid, Castilla-La Mancha and Galicia) and the two autonomous cities currently offer their presidents a higher salary than the €85,608.72 paid to the Prime Minister of Spain.[15] [16]
Each tenure is set to last for four years. Presidents of Andalusia, the Basque Country, Catalonia and Galicia can trigger snap elections, that would then restart the count until the next one. In the rest of Autonomies, elections are fixed to a certain common date, which is currently "the fourth Sunday of May each four years". If snap elections are triggered in these regions (See 2021 Madrilenian regional elections), the mandate given to the next elected president would last until the calendar date in which elections would have been called again.
The Region of Murcia and Extremadura were the only Autonomous Communities that, since 2014, limit the number of terms of their Presidents. The Region of Murcia sets the limit at two, whether consecutive or not,[17] [18] while Extremadura stated that "not being able to be elected president of the Junta de Extremadura those who have already held this position for two successive terms, unless four years have passed since the end of their term and, in no case, whoever has held this position for at least eight years can be elected". However, in 2019, the article that limited the terms of the President of Extremadura was repealed.[19] Two more regions, Catalonia and Castilla-La Mancha, have had their Statutes of Autonomy modified to allow their regional parliaments to establish a term limit, although mandates have not been regulated. In 2021, the Assembly of Murcia eliminated the term limit that would have forbidden president López Miras from seeking a third term.[20]
The existence of the figure of a vice-president varies by Autonomous community. In all communities it is a power of the elected President to appoint a vice-president to replace them if needed, but not all Presidents choose to have an official one, instead appointing a member of their cabinet as their possible replacement.
| Region | Title | Minimum Age | Spanish Citizenship | Member of Parliament | Sole employment | Sole office | Term limit | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andalusia | Presidente de la Junta de Andalucía | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | [21] | |
| Aragon | Presidente de la Diputación General de Aragón | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | [22] [23] | |
| Asturias | Presidente del Principado de Asturias | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | [24] [25] | |
| Balearic Islands | Presidente del Gobierno de las Islas Baleares(President del Govern de les Illes Balears) | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | [26] [27] | |
| Basque Country | Presidente del Gobierno Vasco (Lehendakari) | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | [29] [30] | |
| Canary Islands | Presidente del Gobierno de Canarias | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | [31] [32] | |
| Cantabria | Presidente de Cantabria | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | [33] [34] | |
| Castile and León | Presidente de la Junta de Castilla y León | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | [35] [36] | |
| Castilla-La Mancha | Presidente de la Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (Unregulated, allowed since 2019) | [37] [38] | |
| Catalonia | Presidente de la Generalidad de Cataluña (President de la Generalitat de Catalunya) | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (Unregulated, allowed since 2006) | [39] [40] | |
| Extremadura | Presidente de la Junta de Extremadura | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No (From 2014 to 2019: two consecutive terms, or having held the position for at least eight years) | [41] [42] | |
| Galicia | Presidente de la Junta de Galicia (Presidente da Xunta de Galicia) | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | [43] | |
| La Rioja | Presidente de la Comunidad Autónoma de La Rioja | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | [44] [45] | |
| Madrid | Presidente de la Comunidad de Madrid | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | [46] [47] | |
| Murcia | Presidente de la Región de Murcia | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No (From 2014 to 2021: Two terms) | [48] [49] [50] | |
| Navarre | Presidente de la Comunidad Foral de Navarra(Nafarroako Gobernuko Lehendakaria) | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | [51] [52] | |
| Valencian Community | Presidente de la Generalidad Valenciana (President de la Generalitat Valenciana) | 18 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | [53] [54] |
Many regional presidents have served, in addition to the regional level, at different levels of the national government, before or after their election as regional presidents.
Translation of terms