Sánchez appears at 9:00 in Moncloa and all eyes point to a possible electoral advance.

After an early election in Spain, the procedures and deadlines to call and hold general elections are essentially the same as in a regular call: what changes is the timing of the dissolution of the Cortes, not the electoral “clock,” which is set by the Constitution and the LOREG.

1. Decision of dissolution and call decree

In an early election:

• Who decides: the Prime Minister can propose the dissolution of the Congress, or of both the Congress and the Senate, to the King.
• Limitations: this cannot be done if a motion of no confidence is underway, during the first year of the legislature after the previous early dissolution, nor during states of emergency or siege.
• Dissolution and call decree: the King signs the decree, countersigned by the Prime Minister, which includes:
  • The dissolution of the Chambers.
  • The date of the elections.
  • The date of constitution of the new Cortes.
• Publication: the decree is published in the BOE the following day, and from that moment the electoral calendar starts.

2. Deadlines from the decree until election day

The Constitution establishes that between the call and election day there must be between 54 and 60 days. The LOREG develops these deadlines in great detail, so the decree usually sets the election day on a Sunday within that interval.

In general terms, the scheme is:

• Day 1: publication in the BOE of the dissolution and call decree.
• Day 54-60: holding of the elections (the decree specifies the exact day).

3. Main milestones of the electoral calendar

From the publication of the decree, the LOREG sets a sequence of procedures. Among the most relevant:

• Electoral census:
  • The census closed on a recent prior date is taken as reference (usually a few days before the call).
  • During the first days of the calendar, a period for claims opens to correct errors in the census at town halls and consulates.
• Electoral coalitions:
  • Parties wishing to run in coalition must notify the Electoral Administration in the first days after the call, so that the coalition can present candidacies.
• Presentation of candidacies:
  • This takes place in a middle period of the calendar (shortly after the first fortnight from the call).
  • The Provincial Electoral Boards examine the lists and may request corrections.
• Proclamation of candidacies:
  • Once reviewed, the Boards proclaim the candidacies and they are published in the competent official bulletins.
• Electoral campaign:
  • It lasts 15 days and legally ends at 24:00 on the penultimate day before voting.
  • The day immediately before voting is the reflection day, with no campaign or propaganda acts.
• Postal voting (residents in Spain):
  • Postal voting can be requested at the Post Office from the first days after the call until close to the campaign.
  • The voter receives the documentation at home and must send the vote before the deadline (usually a few days before election day).
• Vote of absent residents (CERA):
  • Consular Offices display the exterior census lists and a period for claims opens.
  • The documentation is sent by mail or collected at the Consulate, and the voter votes by mail or at the consular ballot box within the established deadlines, which usually extend until a few days before the general count.
• Election day:
  • Voting takes place on a Sunday set in the decree, from 9:00 to 20:00 (except exceptional adjustments).
  • At closing, the count is done at the tables and the records are sent to the Electoral Boards.
• General count and constitution of the Cortes:
  • In the following days, the Electoral Administration performs the general count and officially proclaims the elected.
  • The new Chambers are constituted on the date set in the decree, within the maximum period established by the Constitution.

4. Particularities of an early election compared to ordinary elections

Regarding procedures and deadlines, an early election does not introduce substantive changes compared to elections on a regular date:

• The duration of the campaign, the time between the call and election day, and the milestone scheme (census, candidacies, proclamation, postal voting, etc.) are the same.
• The key difference is political and temporal: the current legislature is shortened by an early dissolution, but once the decree is published, the calendar follows the same rules as in an automatic dissolution at the end of the term.
• The restrictions typical of the electoral period (limitation of institutional campaigns, inaugurations, publicity of government achievements, etc.) apply equally from the call, whether early or natural end of the legislature.

In summary, after an early election the “pending” procedures are all those of the ordinary electoral calendar; the early call only advances the moment of dissolution and the call, but does not alter the basic architecture of deadlines and phases provided by the Constitution and the LOREG.

The Spanish Constitution regulates the Permanent Deputation in article 78 and also mentions it in connection with articles 73, 86, and 116. From these provisions, it can be said that the Permanent Deputation of the Congress is the body that guarantees the continuity of the essential functions of the Chamber when it is not convened, is dissolved, or its mandate has expired, with special relevance regarding royal decree-laws and states of alarm, exception, and siege.

1. Constitutional basis and minimum composition

Article 78.1 CE establishes that each Chamber shall have a Permanent Deputation:

• Mandatory existence: in the Congress there must always be a Permanent Deputation; it is not a regulatory option but a constitutional mandate.
• Composition: it must be formed by a minimum of twenty-one members, representing the parliamentary groups in proportion to their numerical importance. That is, it must politically reflect the balance of power of the Plenary.
• Presidency: the Permanent Deputation of the Congress is chaired by the same person who presides over the Chamber (the President of the Congress of Deputies).

2. General function: continuity of the powers of the Chamber

Article 78.2 CE sets its main structural task: to safeguard the powers of the Chamber when it is not convened. This means that:

• The Permanent Deputation acts as an “extension” of the Congress during periods when there are no ordinary sessions or between session periods.
• It can make necessary decisions to prevent the basic parliamentary function of control and the defense of the Chamber’s powers against other powers from being paralyzed.

Additionally, article 78.4 CE adds that, once the Congress is convened again, the Permanent Deputation must report on the matters dealt with and its decisions. The Plenary, therefore, controls and politically assumes or reviews the activity carried out by the Permanent Deputation on its behalf.

3. Power to initiate extraordinary sessions (art. 73 CE)

Article 78.2 CE expressly states that the Permanent Deputation has “the function provided for in article 73.” Article 73.2 CE establishes that the Chambers may meet in extraordinary sessions at the request of:

• The Government,
• The Permanent Deputation itself, or
• The absolute majority of the members of the Chamber.

Therefore, constitutionally the Permanent Deputation of the Congress is empowered to:

• Request the convening of extraordinary sessions of the Plenary of the Congress, to address a specific agenda and when the situation requires it.

4. Powers in case of dissolution or expiration of the mandate

The most relevant core of powers also appears in article 78.2 CE, which provides that the Permanent Deputation:

• Assumes the powers corresponding to the Chambers, in accordance with articles 86 and 116, when the Congress is dissolved or its mandate has expired.

From this derive two very specific blocks of functions:

• Regarding royal decree-laws (art. 86 CE): royal decree-laws must be submitted to debate and a vote of ratification or repeal by the Congress within thirty days. If the Congress is dissolved or its mandate has expired, these powers pass to its Permanent Deputation, which decides whether to ratify or repeal the urgent norm.
• Regarding states of alarm, exception, and siege (art. 116 CE): when one of these states is declared and the Congress is dissolved or its mandate has expired, article 116 CE itself provides that “the powers of the Congress shall be assumed by its Permanent Deputation.” This includes, among others, authorizing or extending the state of alarm, authorizing and controlling the state of exception, and participating in the declaration and monitoring of the state of siege.

5. Continuity between legislatures

Article 78.3 CE adds that, once the mandate has expired or the Congress is dissolved, the Permanent Deputation continues exercising its functions until the constitution of the new Cortes Generales. Therefore:

• It guarantees that there is always a parliamentary body in place to control the Government’s actions in critical situations and to rule on royal decree-laws or exceptional states.
• It prevents legislative or control power vacuums during electoral periods and until the new Chamber is constituted.

In summary, according to the Constitution, the Permanent Deputation of the Congress is a body of continuous representation of the Chamber that:

• Reflects the parliamentary groups proportionally.
• Can request extraordinary sessions.
• Safeguards the powers of the Congress when it is not convened.
• Assumes the powers of the Congress regarding royal decree-laws and states of alarm, exception, and siege when the Congress is dissolved or its mandate has expired.
• Remains in function until the new Cortes are constituted and reports on its actions to the Plenary.

To register an electoral coalition of parties before the Central Electoral Board (JEC) in general elections to the Congress and Senate, the basic framework is in Organic Law 5/1985, of the General Electoral Regime (LOREG), especially in its article 44.2, and in Instruction 1/2010 of the Central Electoral Board, which interprets and develops it.

1. Who can form a coalition and before which Board it is presented

According to the LOREG, the following can present candidacies:

• Registered parties and federations in the corresponding registry.
• Coalitions constituted according to article 44.2 LOREG itself.
• Groups of electors that meet the special legal requirements.

Article 44.2 establishes that parties and federations that agree on a coalition must notify the competent Board. Instruction 1/2010 clarifies which Board this is:

• If the coalition extends to more than one province in general elections, the competent Board is the Central Electoral Board.
• In processes whose scope is only regional, the competence may correspond to the Electoral Board of the Autonomous Community, when the regional legislation has created it.

In the typical case of general elections throughout the State territory, the coalition communication is addressed to the Central Electoral Board, which must accept the coalition if it meets the legal requirements.

2. Deadline to notify the coalition

The time requirement is very strict. Article 44.2 LOREG provides that:

• The notification of the coalition agreement must be made within ten days following the call of the elections.

This period starts counting from the publication of the royal decree of call in the BOE. If submitted late, the Electoral Board may deny the coalition, with the consequent risk for presenting joint candidacies.

3. Minimum content of the notification

Article 44.2 LOREG requires that, in the notification to the Central Electoral Board, at least the following be stated:

• Name of the coalition.
• Rules governing the coalition.
• Persons holding its management or coordination bodies.

Based on this, in practice the “coalition agreement” usually details:

• The distribution of positions on the lists in each constituency.
• The criteria for the use of the name and acronyms on ballots, propaganda, and communications.
• The internal operating rules of the coalition (decision-making, discipline, conflict resolution, etc.).
• The distribution of responsibilities and electoral expenses, although economic-financial controls are also governed by the LOREG and specific instructions from the Court of Auditors for those elections.

4. Name, acronyms, and legal limits

The LOREG, in the same block of articles, establishes relevant limits:

• Parties, federations, and coalitions are those who can present candidacies; the coalition must be identified with a name and, if applicable, its own acronyms, which will then appear on ballots and electoral documentation.
• It is prohibited to present candidacies that in fact continue or succeed a party declared illegal, or groups linked to it, considering, among other criteria, structure, leaders, composition, and financing.
• No party, federation, coalition, or group may present more than one list in the same constituency for the same election; and federated or allied parties cannot present their own candidacy where the coalition to which they belong runs.

These limits condition both the legal design of the coalition and its territorial implantation strategy.

5. Who can sign the agreement and representation before the JEC

The LOREG requires that parties and federations intending to run designate the persons who will represent them before the Electoral Administration. In the case of a coalition:

• The agreement must be validly adopted by the competent bodies of each party according to their statutes (executive committees, management bodies, etc.).
• A notification signed by persons with sufficient representation power on behalf of each party or federation member is submitted to the JEC.
• This notification usually includes the designation of general representatives of the coalition, who will act before the Electoral Administration in all subsequent procedures (proclamation of candidacies, notifications, appeals, etc.).

6. Scope of application and differences with other processes

Article 44.2 LOREG is located in Title I, “Common provisions for elections by direct universal suffrage.” Therefore:

• The rules on coalitions (ten-day deadline, minimum content of the notification, and need to notify the competent Board) apply to all elections regulated by the LOREG: General Courts, European Parliament, local and regional elections of those Communities subject to the state law in this matter.
• Differences between processes mainly concern which Board is competent (Central, Provincial, or Autonomous Community) and some details of financing or accounting oversight set for each election, not the basic structure of the coalition procedure.

In summary, to register a coalition before the Central Electoral Board in a general election it is essential to respect the ten-day deadline from the call, submit the formal notification with the name, internal rules, and management bodies of the coalition, have it signed by legitimate representatives of each party, and comply with the LOREG limits on candidacies and continuity of illegalized parties.