Sánchez intervenes in an event in Valladolid: "Even the right itself believes that the Socialist Party is going to win"

The so-called "grandchildren law" is already approved: it is not an independent law pending a vote, but the eighth additional provision of Law 20/2022, on Democratic Memory. What was recently promoted was a modification through an amendment to an educational project. As of October 19, 2026, its last parliamentary progress in September must be distinguished from the situation after the dissolution of the Cortes due to the electoral call on November 29: the pending reform expired, but the 2022 regulation is not repealed because of this.

What was being attempted to modify

The current regulation opened a temporary pathway to nationality for certain descendants of Spaniards, including cases related to exile and women who lost their nationality by marrying foreigners before the Constitution. Its application period was extended until October 2025; this application window should not be confused with the resolution of already initiated applications (Foreign Affairs explanation).

The modification promoted by Sumar aimed to transfer to the law the administrative criterion that presumes the status of exiles for those who left Spain between July 18, 1936 and December 31, 1955. It was presented through an amendment to an educational reform, not as a new autonomous nationality law (Demócrata, September 23).

How far it had progressed

The last concrete milestone located was the admission of the amendment on September 30 by the Board of the Education Commission of the Congress. That admission allowed it to be processed, but did not equate to approving its content (Demócrata, September 30).

The legal advisors had objected that the nationality modification lacked material connection with the educational project. Their report was not binding, although it warned of possible harm to the right of participation of parliamentarians. Therefore, even before the dissolution, there was a procedural controversy that could condition its progress.

There is no record in the consulted sources that this amendment was definitively approved or that the resulting reform was published in the BOE. The dissolution interrupted the procedure: it is not appropriate now to present the report or the Senate as already scheduled steps.

What would be the next steps

• New initiative: to recover the reform after the elections, a proposal must be presented again or its content incorporated into another legally appropriate initiative. The expired amendment is not automatically reactivated.
• Parliamentary processing: if a new text is promoted, it must pass the corresponding procedures in the Congress and the Senate. The path will depend on the chosen instrument; there is no accredited approval date.
• Publication: any legislative change will need to complete its approval and be published in the BOE before producing the effects provided in its text.

The judicial procedure follows a different schedule

In parallel, the controversy over the electoral effects of certain naturalizations continues. The Supreme Court maintained on October 12 the precautionary suspension and rejected the State Attorney's appeal; subsequently, an association of affected persons promoted actions to recover the vote (Demócrata, October 15). This judicial route is different from the parliamentary reform and the suspension does not, by itself, annul the granted nationalities.

The President of the Government is the highest authority of the executive power in Spain and, according to the 1978 Constitution, concentrates the political direction of the Government and its relationship with the Cortes Generales. Their powers are distributed throughout several provisions, mainly in articles 97, 98, 99, 100, 108, and 112 to 115 of the Constitution.

1. Direction of Government action

Article 97 of the Constitution establishes that the Government directs domestic and foreign policy, the civil and military administration, and the defense of the State, and exercises executive function and regulatory power. Within this collegiate body, the President of the Government holds a position of primacy:

• Directs Government action: sets the major political orientations and coordinates the work of the different ministers.
• Coordinates other Government members (art. 98): ensures coherence among the different ministerial portfolios and resolves conflicts of competence between them within the Executive itself.
• Determines the structure of the Government (number and basic organization of ministries), through royal decrees that configure ministerial organization, within the legal framework.

2. Relationship with the King and appointment of the Government

The Constitution articulates a close relationship between the President of the Government and the Head of State, personified in the King:

• Investiture and appointment: the King proposes a candidate for the Presidency of the Government after consulting representatives designated by political groups and, if applicable, the President of the Congress (art. 99). That candidate must obtain the confidence of the Congress of Deputies. Once achieved, the King appoints them President of the Government.
• Appointment and dismissal of ministers: other Government members are appointed and dismissed by the King, but always at the proposal of the President of the Government (art. 100). In practice, the President decides the composition of the Council of Ministers.
• Endorsement: although the Constitution regulates endorsement generally (arts. 56 to 64), many of the King's actions in governmental matters (appointment and dismissal of ministers, dissolution of the Cortes, calling elections or referendums) require the signature or proposal of the President of the Government.

3. Political responsibility before the Congress

The Government as a whole, and politically its President at the head, is responsible before the Congress of Deputies (art. 108). From this derive several powers and mechanisms:

• Vote of confidence (art. 112): the President can submit to the Congress a vote of confidence on their program or a general policy statement. If they do not obtain a simple majority, they must resign, opening a new investiture process.
• Ordinary relationship with the Cortes: the President appears before the Congress and the Senate, answers questions and interpellations, and accounts for Government action within parliamentary control.

4. Dissolution of the Cortes and electoral call

One of the most relevant powers of the President of the Government is their ability to directly influence the political calendar:

• Proposal to dissolve the Congress, the Senate, or the Cortes Generales (art. 115): the President can propose to the King the dissolution of one or both Chambers and the calling of general elections. The formal decision is made by the King by decree, but always at the President's proposal, who assumes political responsibility.
• This power has limits: it cannot be exercised while a motion of censure is underway, nor before one year has passed since the previous dissolution for the same reason.

5. Powers in crisis situations

The Constitution also foresees a central role for the President of the Government in extraordinary situations:

• States of alarm, exception, and siege (art. 116): although their declaration corresponds to the Government or the Cortes Generales depending on the case, political leadership and initiative correspond to the President, as head of the Executive, who is politically accountable before the Congress.

6. Representation and general political direction

Finally, although the Constitution does not exhaustively detail all practical functions, other political functions derive from their position:

• Representation of the Government inside and outside Spain, especially before other State institutions and foreign governments.
• Promotion of domestic and foreign policy, within the Government's powers set out in article 97.

Overall, the Constitution configures the President of the Government as the center of decision and coordination of the executive power, politically responsible before the Congress and key in the relationship between Government, King, and Cortes Generales.

The last general elections held in Spain were on July 23, 2023. In the final results for the Congress, the PP obtained 137 seats and approximately 33.1% of the votes, while the PSOE got 121 seats and around 31.7%. Therefore, the PP came first and the PSOE second, with a difference of 16 deputies between them (Demócrata, 23J results).

PSOE's result

The PSOE obtained 7,821,718 votes and 121 deputies. The comparison of final results published by Demócrata places their percentage at 31.68%, usually rounded as 31.7%. This total includes the PSC and associated candidacies integrated into the national socialist result (Demócrata, Sánchez results).

Compared to the previous elections, held on November 10, 2019, the socialists added 1,029,519 votes and one seat: they went from 6,792,199 ballots and 120 deputies to the aforementioned 7,821,718 votes and 121 representatives. Despite this improvement, they ceased to occupy the first electoral position and fell behind the PP (Demócrata, PSOE evolution).

The 2023 call also represented the highest number of votes and the highest percentage for Pedro Sánchez in the five general elections in which he had led the socialist candidacy. However, it was not his best result in deputies: in April 2019 he had obtained 123, two more than in July 2023 (Demócrata, historical comparison).

PP's result

The PP was the most voted candidacy and obtained the most representatives, with 137 deputies. Their national percentage, rounded to one decimal, was 33.1%. These figures correspond to the 2023 electoral result, not to a subsequent vote estimate (Demócrata, definitive percentages).

The popular advantage over the PSOE was 16 seats. In percentage terms, the difference was approximately 1.4 points, taking the rounded results to one decimal: 33.1% versus 31.7%. Thus, the distance between them was different depending on whether it is measured in vote proportion or parliamentary representation (Demócrata, 23J comparison).

How to interpret these figures

The above percentages refer to the national vote for the Congress of Deputies; the seats indicate how many representatives each candidacy obtained in that Chamber. They are not Senate results nor percentages of support in a poll.

Moreover, the national percentage does not directly convert into a proportional number of deputies. The distribution is done by constituencies and depends on the territorial distribution of support and the results of competitors. This explains why increasing votes does not necessarily imply increasing seats in the same proportion (Demócrata, votes and seats).

Finally, the date matters: as of October 19, 2026, the elections scheduled for November 29 have not yet been held. Therefore, their polls do not replace the results of July 23, 2023 as an answer to your question.