1910 Spanish general election

1910 Spanish general election

8 May 1910 (Congress)[a] 22 May 1910 (Senate)[b]
All 404 seats in the Congress of Deputies and 180 (of 360) seats in the Senate 203 seats needed for a majority in the Congress of Deputies
First party Second party Third party   Leader José Canalejas Antonio Maura Benito Pérez Galdós Party Liberal Conservative Republican–Socialist Leader since 1910 1905 1909 Leader's seat Alcoy Palma Madrid Last election 79 (C) · 31 (S)[c] 256 (C) · 113 (S) 17 (C) · 2 (S)[d] Seats won 224 (C) · 104 (S) 109 (C) · 46 (S) 29 (C) · 3 (S) Seat change 145 (C) · 73 (S) 147 (C) · 67 (S) 12 (C) · 1 (S)   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Leader Bartolomé Feliú Enric Prat de la Riba José María Vallés Party Jaimist Regionalist Nationalist Federal Leader since 1909 1902 1910 Leader's seat Tafalla — — Last election 14 (C) · 6 (S) 13 (C) · 5 (S) 18 (C) · 5 (S)[e] Seats won 10 (C) · 3 (S) 8 (C) · 5 (S) 10 (C) · 1 (S) Seat change 4 (C) · 3 (S) 5 (C) · 0 (S) 8 (C) · 4 (S)
Election results by Congress of Deputies electoral constituency and district Election results by Senate electoral constituencies
Prime Minister before election José Canalejas Liberal Prime Minister after election José Canalejas Liberal

A general election was held in Spain on Sunday, 8 May (for the Congress of Deputies)^[a] and on Sunday, 22 May 1910 (for the Senate),^[b] to elect the members of the 14th Restoration Cortes. All 404 seats in the Congress of Deputies were up for election, as well as 180 of 360 seats in the Senate.

The informal system of turnismo had allowed the country's two main parties—the Conservatives and the Liberals—to alternate in power by determining in advance the outcome of elections through electoral fraud, often facilitated by the territorial clientelistic networks of local bosses (the caciques). The absence of politically authoritative figureheads since the deaths of Cánovas and Sagasta, together with the national trauma from the Spanish–American War, weakened the internal unity of both parties and allowed faction leaders and local caciques to strengthen their positions as power brokers.

The return of the Conservative Party to power in 1907 had seen the "Long Government" (gobierno largo) of Antonio Maura, characterized by his attempts to implement a regenerationist approach from power (a "revolution from above"). Aiming to secure popular support for the monarchy and curb the power of local bosses, Maura's tenure was prolific: the Pact of Cartagena, a new electoral law, naval remilitarization, protection of national industry, labor conciliation and arbitration, the National Welfare Institute, or attempts to reform local government by establishing mancomunidades (English: commonwealths), among others. The outbreak of war in Melilla and the disaster of Wolf Ravine, followed by Maura's decision to call up reservists and conscripts, unleashed a wave of anti-military unrest that reached its height during the Barcelona's Tragic Week. The government's repressive response—with Francisco Ferrer's execution sparking international outrage—ultimately led to Maura's downfall in October 1909 before completing his program. King Alfonso XIII returned the Liberals to government under Segismundo Moret, the first time in the Restoration system that political pressure from the party in opposition was successful in bringing down the party in power.^[4]

Moret's alliance with republican parties in his opposition against Maura provoked a crisis in the Liberal Party that resulted in his dismissal by the King after only four months as prime minister—before he could arrange the election as scheduled—and the appointment of a new government under José Canalejas. Although Canalejas managed to secure a parliamentary majority in the general election, the episode further weakened the Restoration regime, as Maura regarded his dismissal as a breach of the turno pact that had sustained it for three decades, whereas Moret's downfall marked the first time that the monarchy bypassed the official leader of one of the dynastic leaders.^[5]

The Spanish Constitution of 1876 enshrined Spain as a semi-constitutional monarchy, awarding the monarch the right of legislative initiative together with the bicameral Cortes; the capacity to veto laws passed by the legislative body; the power to appoint senators and government members (including the prime minister); as well as the title of commander-in-chief of the armed forces.^[6] The monarch would play a key role in the turno system by appointing and dismissing governments, which would then organize elections to provide themselves with a parliamentary majority. This informal system allowed the two major political parties at the time, the Conservatives and the Liberals—characterized as oligarchic, elite parties with loose structures dominated by internal factions, each led by powerful individuals—to alternate in power by means of electoral fraud. This was achieved by assigning candidates to districts before the elections were held (encasillado), then arrange their victory through the links between the Ministry of Governance and the territorial clientelistic networks of provincial governors and local bosses (the caciques), excluding minor parties from the power sharing.^[7][8]

The Spanish Cortes were envisaged as "co-legislative bodies", based on a nearly perfect bicameral system.^[9] Both the Congress of Deputies and the Senate had legislative, control and budgetary functions, sharing equal powers except for laws on contributions or public credit, the first reading of which corresponded to Congress, and impeachment processes against government ministers, in which each chamber had separate powers of indictment (Congress) and trial (Senate).^[10][11] Voting for each chamber of the Cortes was on the basis of universal manhood suffrage and censitary suffrage, respectively:

• For the Congress, it comprised all national males over 25 years of age, having at least a two-year residency in a municipality and in full enjoyment of their civil rights. Amendments to the electoral law in 1907 introduced compulsory voting, though those older than 70, the clergy, first instance judges and public notaries (the latter two categories, within their respective area of jurisdiction) were exempt from this obligation.^[12][13][14]

Electors were required to not being in active military service; nor being sentenced—by a final court ruling—to perpetual disqualification from political rights or public offices, to afflictive penalties not legally rehabilitated at least two years in advance, nor to other criminal penalties that remained unserved at the time of the election; neither being legally incapacitated, bankrupt, insolvent, debtors of public funds, nor homeless.^[12]

• For the Senate, it comprised archbishops and bishops (in the ecclesiastical councils); full academics (in the royal academies); rectors, full professors, enrolled doctors, directors of secondary education institutes and heads of special schools in their respective territories (in the universities); members with at least a three-year-old membership (in the economic societies of Friends of the Country); major taxpayers and Spanish citizens of age, being householders residing in Spain and in full enjoyment of their political and civil rights (for delegates in the local councils); and provincial deputies.^[15]

The Congress of Deputies was entitled to one member per each 50,000 inhabitants, distributed among the provinces of Spain.^[16] 98 seats were distributed among 28 multi-member constituencies and elected using a partial block voting system: in constituencies electing ten seats or more, electors could vote for no more than four candidates less than the number of seats to be allocated; in those with more than eight seats and up to ten, for no more than three less; in those with more than four seats and up to eight, for no more than two less; and in those with more than one seat and up to four, for no more than one less.^[17] The remaining seats—306 for the 1910 election—were allocated to single-member districts and elected using plurality voting.^[18] Additionally, in those districts where the number of candidates was equal or less than the number of seats up for election, candidates were to be automatically elected.^[19]

As a result of the aforementioned allocation, each Congress multi-member constituency was entitled the following seats:^[18][20]

For the Senate, 180 seats were elected using an indirect, write-in, two-round majority voting system.^[21][22] Voters in the economic societies, the local councils and major taxpayers elected delegates—equivalent in number to one per each 50 members (in each economic society) or to one-sixth of the councillors (in each local council), with an initial minimum of one—who, together with other voting-able electors, would in turn vote for senators.^[23] The provinces of Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia were allocated four seats each, whereas each of the remaining provinces was allocated three seats, for a total of 150.^[24][25] The remaining 30 were allocated to special districts comprising a number of institutions, electing one seat each—the archdioceses of Burgos, Granada, Santiago de Compostela, Seville, Tarragona, Toledo, Valencia, Valladolid and Zaragoza; the six oldest royal academies (the Royal Spanish; History; Fine Arts of San Fernando; Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences; Moral and Political Sciences and Medicine); the universities of Madrid, Barcelona, Granada, Oviedo, Salamanca, Santiago, Seville, Valencia, Valladolid and Zaragoza; and the economic societies of Friends of the Country from Madrid, Barcelona, León, Seville and Valencia.^[26]

An additional 180 seats comprised senators in their own right—the monarch's offspring and the heir apparent once coming of age; grandees of Spain with an annual income of at least 60,000 Pt (from their own real estate or from rights that enjoy the same legal consideration); captain generals of the Army and admirals of the Navy; the Patriarch of the Indies and archbishops; and the presidents of the Council of State, the Supreme Court, the Court of Auditors, the Supreme Council of War and Navy, after two years of service—as well as senators for life appointed directly by the monarch.^[27]

The law provided for by-elections to fill seats vacated in both the Congress and Senate throughout the legislature's term.^[28][29]

For the Congress, Spanish citizens of age, of secular status, in full enjoyment of their civil rights and with the legal capacity to vote could run for election, provided that they were not contractors of public works or services, within the territorial scope of their contracts; nor holders of government-appointed offices, the judiciary, the prosecution ministry and presidents or members of provincial deputations—during their tenure of office and up to one year after their dismissal—in constituencies within the whole or part of their respective area of jurisdiction, except for government ministers and civil servants in the Central Administration.^[30][31] A number of other positions were exempt from ineligibility, provided that no more than 40 deputies benefitted from these:^[32][33]

• Civil, military and judicial positions with a permanent residence in Madrid and a yearly public salary of at least 12,500 Pt;
• The holders of a number of positions: the president, prosecutors and chamber presidents of the territorial court of Madrid; the rector and full professors of the Central University of Madrid; inspectors of engineers; and general officers of the Army and Navy based in Madrid.

Amendments to the electoral law in 1907 introduced, for candidates intending to run, the requirement to either have previously served as deputies, elected in a general or by-election; to secure the endorsement of two current or former senators or deputies from the same provinces, or from three current or former provincial deputies representing a territory that, in whole or in part, was included in the constituencies for which they sought election; or to secure the endorsement of at least one twentieth of the electorate in the constituencies for which they sought election.^[34]

For the Senate, eligibility was limited to Spanish citizens over 35 years of age and not subject to criminal prosecution, disfranchisement nor asset seizure, provided that they were entitled to be appointed as senators in their own right or belonged or had belonged to one of the following categories:^[35][36]

• Those who had ever served as senators before the promulgation of the 1876 Constitution; and deputies having served in at least three different congresses or eight terms;
• The holders of a number of positions: presidents of the Senate and the Congress; government ministers; bishops; grandees of Spain not eligible as senators in their own right; and presidents and directors of the royal academies;
• Provided an annual income of at least 7,500 Pt from either their own property, salaries from jobs that cannot be lost except for legally proven cause, or from retirement, withdrawal or termination: full academics of the aforementioned corporations on the first half of the seniority scale in their corps; first-class inspectors general of the corps of civil, mining and forest engineers; and full professors with at least four years of seniority in their category and practice;
• Provided two prior years of service: Army's lieutenant generals and Navy's vice admirals; and other members and prosecutors of the Council of State, the Supreme Court, the Court of Auditors, the Supreme Council of War and Navy, and the dean of the Court of Military Orders;
• Ambassadors after two years of service and plenipotentiaries after four;
• Those with an annual income of 20,000 Pt or were taxpayers with a minimum quota of 4,000 Pt in direct contributions at least two years in advance, provided that they either belonged to the Spanish nobility, had been previously deputies, provincial deputies or mayors in provincial capitals or towns over 20,000 inhabitants.

Other causes of ineligibility for the Senate were imposed on territorial-level officers in government bodies and institutions—during their tenure of office and up to three months after their dismissal—in constituencies within the whole or part of their respective area of jurisdiction; contractors of public works or services; tax collectors and their guarantors; debtors of the State; deputies; local councillors (except those in Madrid); and provincial deputies for their respective provinces.^[37]

The term of each chamber of the Cortes—the Congress and one-half of the elective part of the Senate—expired five years from the date of their previous election, unless they were dissolved earlier.^[38] The previous Congress and Senate elections were held on 21 April and 5 May 1907, which meant that the legislature's terms would have expired on 21 April and 5 May 1912, respectively. The monarch had the prerogative to dissolve both chambers at any given time—either jointly or separately—and call a snap election.^[39][40] There was no constitutional requirement for concurrent elections to the Congress and the Senate, nor for the elective part of the Senate to be renewed in its entirety except in the case that a full dissolution was agreed by the monarch. Still, there was only one case of a separate election (for the Senate in 1877) and no half-Senate elections taking place under the 1876 Constitution.

The Cortes were officially dissolved on 14 April 1910, with the dissolution decree setting the election dates for 8 May (for the Congress) and 22 May 1910 (for the Senate) and scheduling for both chambers to reconvene on 15 June.^[41]

← Summary of the 8 May 1910 Congress of Deputies election results →

Parties and alliances		Popular vote		Seats
		Votes	%	A.29	Cont.	Total
	Liberal Party (PL)			70	154	224
	Liberal Conservative Party (PLC)			38	71	109
	Republican–Socialist Conjunction (CRS)			3	26	29
	Republican Nationalist Federal Union (UFNR)			0	10	10
	Traditionalist Communion (Jaimist) (CT)			3	7	10
	Regionalist League (LR)			2	6	8
	Integrist Party (PI)			1	2	3
	Autonomist Republican Union Party (PURA)			0	2	2
	Independents (INDEP)			2	7	9
Total				119	285	404
Votes cast / turnout
Abstentions
Registered voters
Sources[a][42][43][44][45][46][47]

← Summary of the 22 May 1910 Senate of Spain election results →

Parties and alliances		Seats
	Liberal Party (PL)	104
	Liberal Conservative Party (PLC)	46
	Integrist Party (PI)	5
	Regionalist League (LR)	5
	Republican–Socialist Conjunction (CRS)	3
	Traditionalist Communion (Jaimist) (CT)	3
	Republican Nationalist Federal Union (UFNR)	1
	Social Defence Committee (CDS)	1
	Independents (INDEP)	3
	Archbishops (ARCH)	9
Total elective seats		180
Sources[b][48][49][50][51][52][53][54]

• Encasillado