The Navarrese People's Union (; ), abbreviated to UPN, is a regional conservative political party in Navarre, Spain. Until 2008, it was a fraternal party of the People's Party (PP), acting as the latter's Navarrese branch.

UPN is a strong opponent of Basque nationalism,Oscar Barberà Aresté: Los orígenes de la Unión del Pueblo Navarro (1979-1991). Papers: revista de sociología, ISSN 0210-2862, ISSN-e 2013-9004, Nº 92, 2009. Pages 143-169.UPN-PP pide el voto para "frenar al nacionalismo vasco y hacer que Navarra avance". El Español, 12/12/2015. and supports a Spanish regional identity for Navarre with a marginal Basque component and separate from the Basque Country. The party's regionalist tradition dates back to the nineteenth century, in which the Spanish nation is seen to be based on 'regional liberties'.

During the 1991–2008 period, UPN acted as the Navarrese branch of the PP, which, in return, did not run at Navarrese elections as a part of their agreement. Since 1991, UPN has been the largest party in elections for the regional Parliament of Navarre and was the ruling party of the Autonomous Community from 1996 to 2015.

History

The UPN was a Navarrese splinter group of the Union of the Democratic Centre. Its president, Miguel Sanz, had been the head of the Navarrese government from 1996 to 2015.

Juan Cruz Alli was elected president of the Navarrese government for UPN, but later disagreed with the orientation the party was taking and founded another party Democrats' Convergence of Navarre.

Pacts with the PP As part of an agreement held over the 1991–2008 period, the PP did not run in any elections in the Navarra Congress Electoral District and People's Party of Navarre (founded in 1989) was dissolved, while UPN were on the same national ticket as the PP at the Spanish national elections. The national Deputies and Senators elected as part of UPN's ticket were part of the PP Parliamentary Group. Also, UPN members were eligible –and indeed chosen– for national leadership positions in the PP.

The pact was terminated in October 2008 as a result of UPN refusal to vote alongside the PP in the Spanish Congress of Deputies to reject the government budget presented by José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero's cabinet. One of the two MPs elected under the UPN-PP ticket refused to follow UPN's instructions and a number of UPN elected representatives defected to join the PP. The new situation led to the PP setting up its own office in Navarre.

The two parties ran separate lists in the 2011 regional elections in Navarre with the UPN receiving 34.5% against the 7.3% that the PP received. On 8 September 2011, the two parties reached an agreement to renew their alliance for the 2011 Spanish general election.UPN encabezará la coalición con el PP, El Mundo, 8 September 2011 Under the agreement, the UPN would take the first and third places on the list for Congress while the PP would have the second. For the Senate, the UPN would have the top two places on the list, with the PP taking the third place. A major factor in the new agreement was the two parties' desire to prevent Bildu from winning enough seats to form a parliamentary group.

Electoral performance Parliament of Navarre Parliament of Navarre Election Leading candidate Votes % Seats +/– Government 1979 Jesús Aizpún 40,764 15.99 (#3) — 1983 Balbino Bados 62,072 23.34 (#2) 0 1987 Juan Cruz Alli 69,419 24.50 (#2) 1 1991 96,005 34.95 (#1) 6 1995 Miguel Sanz 93,163 31.35 (#1) 3 1999 125,497 41.37 (#1) 5 2003 127,460 41.48 (#1) 1 2007 139,122 42.19 (#1) 1 2011 Yolanda Barcina 111,474 34.48 (#1) 3 2015 Javier Esparza 92,705 27.44 (#1) 4 2019 Within NA+ 0 2023 92,392 28.00 (#1) 0

Cortes Generales Cortes Generales Election Navarre Congress Senate Vote % Score Seats +/– Seats +/– 1979 28,248 11.17% 3rd — — 1982 76,255 25.59% 2nd 1 1 1986 80,922 29.63% 2nd 0 0 1989 92,216 33.18% 1st 1 2 1993 112,228 36.13% 1st 0 0 1996 120,335 37.12% 1st 1 0 2000 150,995 49.89% 1st 1 0 2004 127,653 37.60% 1st 1 0 2008 133,059 39.22% 1st 0 0 2011 126,516 38.21% 1st 1 1 2015 102,244 28.94% 1st 1 1 2016 106,976 31.90% 1st 0 0 2019 (Apr) Within NA+ 0 0 2019 (Nov) Within NA+ 0 0202351,76415.27%4th10

Notes

References

External links Navarrese People's Union official site Parliament of Navarre