Castilla y León returns to the polls this Sunday to choose the composition of its autonomous Parliament on a day that will mark the beginning of the XII legislature.
The election introduces a relevant institutional novelty: the regional parliament goes from 81 to 82 procurators, after Segovia gains a seat due to the increase in population registered since the previous elections.
More than two million citizens are called to vote in a community that historically has been one of the main electoral strongholds of the Popular Party, although in recent cycles the political map has become more fragmented.
Electoral participation: first advance of the day
The first official participation update has been published at 11:30 a.m. According to data released by the Ministry of Interior, participation stands at 12.6%. This represents 1.3 points more than in the 2022 elections, when at that same time the percentage of voters was 11.3%.
The data points to a slightly higher mobilization in the first hours of the day, although analysts usually warn that the real evolution of the vote is usually defined in the updates at 2:00 PM and 6:00 PM.
Chart: historical evolution of participation in Castile and León
The participation in the regional elections of Castile and Leon has followed an irregular evolution since the first electoral event held in 1983.
In general, electoral mobilization in the community has moved at moderate levels, with participation rates that usually stand between 60% and 70% of the census at the end of the day.
The following chart shows how participation in regional elections has evolved since 1983.
Evolution of participation in the regional elections of Castilla y León
Over the last decades, some relevant changes have been registered:
- A progressive decline in participation in the nineties
- A moderate recovery in the 2000s
- More pronounced fluctuations in the last decade due to political fragmentation
Participation by provinces: Soria leads the first advance
In the territorial analysis, the first participation advance shows significant differences between provinces.
According to the data available at 11:30 hours, the province with the highest participation is Soria, with 13.7% and the largest increase compared to the previous elections is registered in León, rising 1.84 points.
This pattern is relatively common in Castilla y León: the less populated provinces usually register higher levels of participation in the first hours of voting, while in large cities the vote tends to concentrate more in the afternoon.
Chart: participation by provinces
Participation by provinces in the elections of Castile and Leon
What is elected in these elections
The citizens of Castile and León elect this Sunday the 82 procurators who will form the autonomous parliament during the next four years.
The electoral system is based on provincial constituencies, which means that each province has a fixed number of seats assigned based on its population.
The distribution of seats introduces a novelty compared to the previous elections: Segovia gains an additional procurator, raising the total number of representatives of the chamber.