A regional election was held in the Basque Country on 21 April 2024 to elect the 13th Parliament of the autonomous community. All 75 seats in the Parliament were up for election.
This election was the first since 2009 not to see Iñigo Urkullu as the leading candidate of the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV), after the party chose to replace the incumbent Lehendakari with a low profile politician at the provincial level, Imanol Pradales, following 12 years of uninterrupted government. The main opposition, EH Bildu, also ran under a new candidate, Pello Otxandiano, amid speculation that long-time leader Arnaldo Otegi could have led the candidacy following the end of his disqualification from running for public office. All other parliamentary parties but Podemos and Vox also ran under new candidates: Eneko Andueza by the Socialist Party of the Basque Country–Basque Country Left (PSE–EE), Javier de Andrés by the People's Party (PP)—with the PP+Cs alliance being discontinued and Citizens (CS) deciding not to contest the election—and Alba García by Sumar.
The results showed a close race between the PNV and EH Bildu, with the latter slightly underperforming opinion polls but securing a large increase in its popular support. The PSE–EE, which had been the junior partner to the PNV-led government since 2016, saw an unexpected increase in support to secure its best result since 2012. The PP increased its seat totals by one compared to the PP+Cs results in 2020, whereas the dissolution of the Elkarrekin Podemos alliance saw Sumar clinging on to one seat and Podemos losing all its representation. Vox was able to retain its seat for Álava.
Overview Under the 1979 Statute of Autonomy, the Basque Parliament was the unicameral legislature of the Basque Autonomous Community, having legislative power in devolved matters, as well as the ability to grant or withdraw confidence from a lehendakari.. The electoral and procedural rules were supplemented by national law provisions..
Date The term of the Basque Parliament expired four years after the date of its previous election, unless it was dissolved earlier. The election decree was required to be issued no later than 25 days before the scheduled expiration date of parliament and published on the following day in the Official Gazette of the Basque Country (BOPV), with election day taking place 54 days after the decree's publication.; . The previous election was held on 12 July 2020, which meant that the chamber's term would have expired on 12 July 2024. The election decree was required to be published in the BOPV no later than 18 June 2024, setting the latest possible date for election day on 11 August 2024.
The lehendakari had the prerogative to dissolve the Basque Parliament at any given time and call a snap election, provided that no motion of no confidence was in process.. In the event of an investiture process failing to elect a lehendakari within a 60-day period from the Parliament's reconvening, the chamber was to be automatically dissolved and a fresh election called..
Following the announcement by Galician president Alfonso Rueda of a snap election in Galicia for 18 February 2024, Urkullu was asked whether he would follow suit and make both elections be held simultaneously—as it had been the case since 2009. To this, he simply stated that "the Basque Country is not Galicia", distancing himself from Rueda's decision. Instead, it was expected that the Basque election would most likely be held in March or April 2024, to allow for more time to approve a final set of bills in the Basque Parliament as well as to avoid a simultaneous call with the European Parliament election on 9 June.
The Basque Parliament was officially dissolved on 27 February 2024 with the publication of the corresponding decree in the BOPV, setting election day for 21 April..
Electoral system Voting for the Parliament was based on universal suffrage, comprising all Spanish nationals over 18 years of age, registered in the Basque Country and with full political rights, provided that they had not been deprived of the right to vote by a final sentence.; ( by ). Amendments in 2022 abolished the "begged" voting system (), under which non-resident citizens were required to apply for voting. The expat vote system was attributed responsibility for a major decrease in the turnout of Spaniards abroad during the years it was in force.
The Basque Parliament had 75 seats. All were elected in three multi-member constituencies—corresponding to the provinces of Álava, Biscay and Gipuzkoa, each of which was assigned a fixed number of 25 seats to provide for an equal parliamentary representation of the three provinces—using the D'Hondt method and closed-list proportional voting, with a three percent-threshold of valid votes (including blank ballots) in each constituency.; ; . The use of this electoral method resulted in a higher effective threshold depending on district magnitude and vote distribution.
The law did not provide for by-elections to fill vacant seats; instead, any vacancies arising after the proclamation of candidates and during the legislative term were filled by the next candidates on the party lists or, when required, by designated substitutes. ( by ).
Outgoing parliament The table below shows the composition of the parliamentary groups in the chamber at the time of dissolution.
+ Parliamentary composition in February 2024 Groups Parties Legislators Seats Total Basque Nationalists Parliamentary Group EAJ/PNV 31 31 EH Bildu Parliamentary Group EH Bildu 21 21 Basque Socialists Parliamentary Group PSE–EE (PSOE) 10 10 Elkarrekin Podemos–IU Parliamentary Group Podemos 4 6 EzAn–IU 2 Basque People's Parliamentary Group PP 5 5 Mixed Group Vox 1 2 CS 1
Parties and candidates The electoral law allowed for parties and federations registered in the interior ministry, alliances and groupings of electors to present lists of candidates. Parties and federations intending to form an alliance were required to inform the relevant electoral commission within 10 days of the election call, whereas groupings of electors needed to secure the signature of at least one percent of the electorate in the constituencies for which they sought election, disallowing electors from signing for more than one list. ( by ). Additionally, a balanced composition of men and women was required in the electoral lists, so that candidates of either sex made up at least 40 percent of the total composition..
Below is a list of the main parties and alliances which contested the election:
Candidacy Parties andalliances Leading candidate Ideology Previous result Vote % Seats EAJ/PNV Imanol Pradales Basque nationalismChristian democracySocial democracy 38.7% EH Bildu Pello Otxandiano Basque independenceAbertzale leftSocialism 27.6% PSE–EE(PSOE) Eneko Andueza Social democracy 13.5% Podemos–AV Miren Gorrotxategi Left-wing populismDemocratic socialism 9.3% Sumar Alba García ProgressivismGreen politicsDemocratic socialism PP Javier de Andrés ConservatismChristian democracy 6.7% Vox Amaia Martínez Right-wing populismUltranationalismNational conservatism 1.9%
Campaign Timetable The key dates are listed below (all times are CET):
26 February: The election decree is issued with the countersign of the lehendakari, after deliberation in the Government. 27 February: Formal dissolution of parliament and start of prohibition period on the inauguration of public works, services or projects. 1 March: Initial constitution of historical territory and zone electoral commissions with judicial members. 4 March: Division of constituencies into polling sections and stations. 8 March: Deadline for parties and federations to report on their electoral alliances. 11 March: Deadline for electoral register consultation for the purpose of possible corrections. 18 March: Deadline for parties, federations, alliances, and groupings of electors to present electoral lists. 20 March: Publication of submitted electoral lists in the Official Gazette of the Basque Country (BOPV). 25 March: Official proclamation of validly submitted electoral lists. 26 March: Publication of proclaimed electoral lists in the BOPV. 27 March: Deadline for the selection of polling station members by sortition. 4 April: Deadline for the appointment of non-judicial members to historical territory and zone electoral commissions. 5 April: Official start of electoral campaigning.. 11 April: Deadline to apply for postal voting. 16 April: Start of legal ban on electoral opinion polling publication; deadline for non-resident citizens (electors residing abroad (CERA) and citizens temporarily absent from Spain) to vote by mail. 17 April: Deadline for postal and temporarily absent voting. 18 April: Deadline for CERA voting. 19 April: Last day of electoral campaigning. 20 April: Official election silence ("reflection day"). 21 April: Election day (polling stations open at 9 am and close at 8 pm or once voters present in a queue at/outside the polling station at 8 pm have cast their vote); provisional vote counting. 26 April: Start of general vote counting, including CERA votes. 30 April: Deadline for the general vote counting. 11 May: Deadline for the proclamation of elected members. 18 May: Deadline for the publication of definitive election results in the BOPV.
Party slogans Party or alliance Original slogan English translation EAJ/PNV « Aukeratu Euskadi. Elige Bienestar » "Choose the Basque Country. Choose wellbeing" EH Bildu « Aldaketa da orain. El futuro en tus manos » "The change is now. The future in your hands" PSE–EE (PSOE) « Vota al que decide. Erabakia zurea » "Vote for the one who decides. The decision is yours" Podemos–AV « Elige izquierda » "Choose the left" Sumar « Es tu tiempo. Euskadi berria » "It's your time. The new Basque Country" PP « Por una Euskadi abierta/Euskadi ireki baten alde » "For an open Basque Country" Vox « Sabes que es verdad » "You know it's true"
Debates + 2024 Basque regional election debates Date Organizer(s) Moderator(s) PNV EH Bildu PSE–EE Podemos Sumar PP Vox Audience 9 April Coordinadora deONGD de Euskadi Begoña Beristain S S S S S S NI — 9 April RTVE Xabier FortesTeresa Aguiló S S S 14.2% 10 April Cadena SER Eva Domaika S S S NI NI S NI — 10 April EITB Nerea Reparaz S S 4.0% 12 April AMPEA Eva Silván S S S S S S NI — 12 April Cadena SER Eva Domaika S S S S S S — 15 April El Diario Vasco Estrella VallejoJavier Roldán S NI — 16 April EITB África BaetaXabier García Ramsden 17.4% 17 April UN EtxeaEGK Iratxe Uriarte S S S S S S NI — 17 April Cadena SER Eva Domaika S S S S S S — 18 April El Correo Marta MadrugaOlatz Barriuso — 19 April Cadena SER Jon Egaña —
Opinion polls The tables below list opinion polling results in reverse chronological order, showing the most recent first and using the dates when the survey fieldwork was done, as opposed to the date of publication. Where the fieldwork dates are unknown, the date of publication is given instead. The highest percentage figure in each polling survey is displayed with its background shaded in the leading party's colour. If a tie ensues, this is applied to the figures with the highest percentages. The "Lead" column on the right shows the percentage-point difference between the parties with the highest percentages in a poll.
Graphical summary
Voting intention estimates The table below lists weighted voting intention estimates. Refusals are generally excluded from the party vote percentages, while question wording and the treatment of "don't know" responses and those not intending to vote may vary between polling organisations. When available, seat projections determined by the polling organisations are displayed below (or in place of) the percentages in a smaller font; 38 seats were required for an absolute majority in the Basque Parliament.