Madrid, Barcelona, Asturias, and Santa Cruz de Tenerife top the list of constituencies where the number of registered voters in the Electoral Census of Absentee Residents (CERA) has grown the most since the general elections of 2023.
In this legislature, the volume of people with the right to vote from abroad has increased from 2,328,261 to 2,747,688, which represents a rise of 18.03% (419,927 more voters). This jump coincides with the period of greatest impact of the granting of nationalities derived from the additional provision of the Law of Democratic Memory, known as the "grandchildren's law."
The regulation was applied from October 2022, although its effect on the CERA of the 2023 general elections was limited, as only those who were listed in the external census until March 1 of that year could participate.
In a recent parliamentary response, the Executive estimates that there are 600,684 nationality applications processed under the "grandchildren's law" up to August 31, 2026, from which 369,017 new registrations of Spaniards in the Civil Registry would have derived.
Argentina surpasses half a million voters in the CERA
The data from the Electoral Census Office, consulted by Europa Press, reflects that the largest increase in the CERA has been recorded in Argentina, with 85,599 new voters reaching a total of 520,203 people. Following is Mexico, another of the main destinations for emigration after the Civil War and the dictatorship, which adds 55,259 more registered voters, reaching 191,062 voters.
The third country where the number of registered voters in the CERA has grown the most is the United States, with 53,317 additional voters compared to three years ago and a total of 211,479 potential voters. Next are France, with 27,228 new registrations (265,212 in total); the United Kingdom, which adds 18,925 voters (up to 153,126), and Cuba, with 16,242 new registrations and an external census of 169,038 people.
If we look at the Spanish constituencies, Madrid is the one that adds the most CERA voters in this period, with 118,440 more voters, which equates to an increase of 31.45%. It is followed by Barcelona, with 44,704 new registrations; Asturias, which adds 19,280 people; and Santa Cruz de Tenerife, with 17,342 more citizens with the right to vote from abroad.
The external census of Madrid skyrockets by 31%
With the census closed as of August 1, valid for the elections on November 29, Madrid will be the province with the most voters abroad, nearing 494,935 people. Mexico tops the list of countries with the most registered voters from the CERA linked to the Community of Madrid, with 69,255 people, that is, 31,356 more than in 2023. Following are the United States, with 62,214 (15,963 more than in the previous election) and Argentina, which adds 8,789 additional voters over the 22,587 from 2023.
Barcelona remains the second constituency with the most potential voters from outside Spain: 262,286 people, compared to the 217,682 listed in the CERA in 2023, which implies 44,704 new registrations. In this case, the majority reside in France (28,300), followed by Argentina (26,443) and the United States (22,588). In these three countries, the increase is around 5,000 people in each. The fourth country with the most registered voters in the CERA linked to Barcelona is Mexico, with 18,837 citizens, 3,879 more than in 2023.
In Asturias, the census of residents abroad has grown by 19,280 people since the last general election, reaching 142,710 voters. Most live in Argentina (36,068), Mexico (26,895), and Cuba (16,669). In this constituency, the most notable increase occurs in Argentina, with 4,840 more voters, followed by Mexico, which adds 5,816, while in Cuba the CERA now includes 1,090 new voters.
In Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 124,555 people residing outside the country will be able to exercise their right to vote, 17,342 more than in 2023. Venezuela is the country with the most registered voters, 46,803, about 4,400 more than three years ago. In Cuba, there are 43,415 potential voters, 5,716 more, and in the United States, there are 12,111, which means 4,086 additional voters compared to the previous election.
A Coruña, Málaga, Pontevedra, and Valencia also add thousands of voters
In A Coruña, the census of residents abroad has increased by 14,329 people between both elections, rising from 163,366 to 178,695. Argentina concentrates the largest number of voters in this constituency, with 61,694 people, 4,688 more than in 2023. From Uruguay, 22,162 citizens will be able to vote, 3,203 more, and from Switzerland, 16,608, around a thousand more than three years ago.
In Málaga, the number of people who will be able to vote from abroad has grown by 12,530 compared to three years ago, reaching a total of 73,383 voters. About 14,900 will do so from Argentina, 3,800 more than in the last legislative elections; 8,857 from France (866 more) and almost 7,000 from Germany, about 550 more than in the previous call.
Pontevedra registers 149,329 registered in the CERA, 12,500 more than in the previous general elections. Of them, 52,994 reside in Argentina, almost 4,300 more than in 2023; 25,066 live in Brazil, about 2,600 more, and 13,600 in Uruguay, 1,600 more than in the previous electoral event.
In Valencia, the number of voters entitled to vote from abroad has increased by 11,865 people since 2023, reaching 82,257. The country with the most potential voters linked to this constituency is France, with 16,698 registered, 1,738 more, followed by Argentina, with 8,831, which adds 1,782 voters.
Almost 10,000 new voters from abroad in Las Palmas
In Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 9,724 more people than in the previous call will be able to vote from abroad, so the foreign census stands at 65,365 voters. Most come from Argentina (3,228, nearly 500 more) and from Cuba (28,639, about 2,700 more).
The growth of the CERA in Pontevedra is quantified at 7,565 people, and stands at 110,503 people, with Argentina as the country with the most registered (31,883, 2,683 more than three years ago), followed by Cuba with 14,861, about 900 more than in 2023.
In Lugo, the census of residents abroad has added 7,238 voters, for a total of 76,336. Of them, 34,812 live in Argentina, 3,233 more than three years ago, while the second country with the most potential voters is Cuba, with 16,466 registered, almost a thousand more than in the previous electoral call.