1914 Spanish general election
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A general election was held in Spain on 8 March 1914 (for the Congress of Deputies),[a] and on 22 March 1914 (for the Senate), to elect the members of the 15th Cortes under the Spanish Constitution of 1876, during the Restoration period. All 408 seats in the Congress of Deputies were up for election, as well as 180 of 360 seats in the Senate.
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8 March 1914 (Congress)[a]
22 March 1914 (Senate) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
All 408 seats in the Congress of Deputies and 180 (of 360) seats in the Senate 205 seats needed for a majority in the Congress of Deputies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The informal turno systemâwhich had allowed the country's two main parties, the Conservatives and the Liberals, to alternate in power by determining election outcomes in advance through caciquism and electoral fraudâbroke down following Antonio Maura's downfall in 1909, as the latter had come to see the Liberal rise to power as the liquidation of the Pact of El Pardo. The government of Prime Minister José Canalejas attempted to enforce a liberal democratic regenerationism to curb the country's problems, seeing the abolition of consumption taxes, the introduction of compulsory military service, laws addressing the social question, the legal groundwork for the establishment of the Commonwealth of Catalonia in order to placate rising Catalan regionalism and the establishment of a Spanish protectorate in Morocco. But his assassination before he could fully realize his agenda (such as fulfilling the separation of church and state or the rebuilding of the turno with the Conservatives) plunged his plansâand his partyâinto chaos.
King Alfonso XIII entrusted the Count of Romanones with the formation of a new cabinet, but an internal crisis over the leadership of the Liberal Party prompted supporters of the Marquis of Alhucemas to split into the Liberal Democratic Party. As a result, Romanones's government fell in October 1913 after being defeated in a vote of confidence. Maura rejected the King's mandate to continue the turno, leading to the appointment of Eduardo Dato as prime minister instead. This fragmented the Conservative Party into the Maurists (followers of Maura's doctrine), the "suitable ones" (defenders of the turno system) and the Ciervists (who advocated for Conservative unity of action without affiliating themselves with either faction).
The election saw the Conservative bloc winning a majority of seats in both chambers, but internal infighting between the Maurist and Datist factions would leave the government in an unstable minority position. The Liberals ran divided between the supporters of Romanones and the liberal-democratic faction of the Marquis of Alhucemas. The RepublicanâSocialist Conjunction had been weakened by the departures of both the Reformist Party of MelquÃades Ãlvarez (representing a moderate republicanism) and Alejandro Lerroux's Radical Republican Party.
Background
Following the Bourbon Restoration in 1874, the Spanish Constitution of 1876 enshrined Spain as a semi-constitutional monarchy, awarding the monarchâunder the royal prerogativeâthe right of legislative initiative together with the bicameral Cortes; the capacity to veto laws passed by the legislative body; the power to appoint government members (including the prime minister); the ability to grant or deny parliamentary dissolution, the adjournment of legislative sessions and the signature of royal decrees; as well as the title of commander-in-chief of the armed forces.[3][4] 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 "dynastic" political parties at the time, the Conservatives and the Liberalsâcharacterized as oligarchic, elite parties with loose structures dominated by internal factions, each led by powerful individualsâto alternate in power by means of electoral fraud (pucherazo). 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.[5][6]
The Restoration system had entered a phase of decline following the national trauma from the SpanishâAmerican War (the "1898 disaster") and the absence of politically authoritative figureheads since the deaths of Antonio Cánovas del Castillo (1897) and Práxedes Mateo Sagasta (1903),[7] weakening the internal unity of both dynastic parties and strengthening the position of faction leaders and local caciques as power brokers.[8][9] Concurrently, the anti-monarchist opposition became increasingly competitive in urban and some rural districts, partly due to the introduction of universal suffrage since 1890, partly due to the progressive weakening of the pro-government electoral apparatus.[10][11][12]
The 1909â1910 government crisis had seen both the fall of the Conservative government of Antonio Maura by political pressure from the Liberals under Segismundo Moret, and the latter losing the support of the various factions within his party and being replaced by José Canalejas.[13][14] As prime minister, Canalejas attempted to enforce his own vision of regenerationism (a "democratic regeneration") to "nationalize" the monarchy and address the country's problems, which at the time included: growing tensions within the armed forces, ChurchâState relations, the Moroccan and social questionsâwith an increase in strike action and the emergence of the National Confederation of Labour (CNT), seeing episodes such as the Cullera eventsâand rising Catalan regionalism.[15][16] This period saw the implementation of various reforms, such as the abolition of consumption taxes, the introduction compulsory military servicet, or a more appropriate regulation of women's working conditions (the "Law of the Chair" or ley de la silla).[16][17][18]
Canalejas's aim to curb the Catholic Church's influence over public education resulted in a temporary rupture of relations with the Holy See, as well as a media campaign accusing Canalejas of fostering anti-clericalism.[19] Discreet negotiations saw the approval of the Padlock Law (ley del candado) in December 1910, which restricted the establishment of new religious orders during the next two years.[16][20] His government also laid the legal foundations for the creation of commonwealths of provinces with limited powers in an attempt to placate the ambitions of the Regionalist League, paving the way for the Commonwealth of Catalonia in 1914.[15][19] Canalejas refrained from intervening in the 5 October 1910 revolution that overthrew the Portuguese monarchy, but had to tackle its repercussions during the pro-republican mutiny aboard the ironclad Numancia in August 1911.[19][21] The successful Kert campaign helped bring about the Spanish protectorate in Morocco, with the signing of the FrancoâSpanish Treaty of 1912.[22][23]
Canalejas also attempted to rebuild the turno system through a conciliatory stance towards the Conservatives.[19] Their leader, Maura, had come to see the Pact of El Pardo as liquidated following his fall from power in 1909, declaring an "implacable hostility" to the Liberals in powerâequivalent to the official severance of solidarity ties between the two dynastic parties and a renounce to the power alternationâas long as they did not publicly retract their actions of the previous biennium.[24][25][26] In the ensuing years, the Conservatives would divide among those adhering to Maura's political doctrine against the turno (the Maurist faction or mauristas), and those advocating for continuity out of loyalty to the monarchy and a desire not to be excluded from power (who would become known as the idóneos or "suitable ones").[25][26]
The assassination of Canalejas in November 1912 put an end to his agenda and plunged his party into chaos.[22][27] King Alfonso XIII's initial decision to appoint the president of the Congress of Deputies, the Count of Romanones, as prime minister, was met with outrage by Mauraâdeepening his disaffection with the "failed" turnoâas well as by supporters of minister of state under Canalejas, the Marquis of Alhucemas, who also aspired to the Liberal leadership.[28][29] The AlhucemasâRomanones feud and the leadership crisis within the Liberal Party, coupled with the debate on the Law of Commonwealths, brought about the former's split into the Liberal Democratic Party in the summer of 1913 and the latter's downfall in a Senate vote of confidence on 25 October.[25][28][29][30] Maura's refusal to accept the King's mandate and maintain the turno caused a schism within the Conservative Party between "maurists" and "suitable ones", leading Alfonso XIII to hand over power to the "suitable" Eduardo Dato.[26][31][32] A third Conservative faction led by Juan de la Ciervaâgovernance minister under Mauraâsupported restoring unity of action between idóneos and mauristas, without affiliating itself to either.[33]
Within the republican opposition, the Reformist Party was formed in 1912 by MelquÃades Ãlvarez, Gumersindo de Azcárate and Benito Pérez Galdós, representing a moderate, accidentalist and democratic republicanism.[22][34] Concurrently, disagreements with Alejandro Lerroux's Radical Republican Party led to its departure from the RepublicanâSocialist Conjunction.[35]
Overview
Under the 1876 Constitution, the Spanish Cortes were conceived as "co-legislative bodies", forming a nearly perfect bicameral system.[36] Both the Congress of Deputies and the Senate exercised legislative, oversight and budgetary functions, sharing almost equal powers, except in budget laws (taxation and public credit)âwhose first reading corresponded to Congressâand in impeachment processes against government ministers, where Congress handled indictment and the Senate the trial.[37][38]
Date
The term of each chamber of the Cortesâthe Congress and one-half of the elective part of the Senateâexpired five years from the date of their previous election, unless they were dissolved earlier.[39] The previous elections were held on 8 May 1910 for the Congress and on 22 May 1910 for the Senate, which meant that the chambers' terms would have expired on 8 and 22 May 1915, respectively.
The monarch had the prerogative to dissolve both chambers at any given timeâeither jointly or separatelyâand call a snap election.[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 2 January and 13 February 1914, with the corresponding decree setting election day for 8 March (Congress) and 22 March 1914 (Senate) and scheduling for both chambers to reconvene on 2 April.[41]
Electoral system
Voting for the Congress of Deputies was based on universal manhood suffrage, comprising all Spanish national males over 25 years of age with full civil rights, provided they had two years of residence in a Spanish municipality and were not enlisted ranks in active duty. It was compulsory, excepting those over 70, the clergy andâwithin their territoriesâtrial judges and public notaries.[42][43][44][45] Additional restrictions excluded those deprived of political rights or barred from public office by a final sentence, criminally imprisoned or convicted, legally incapacitated, bankrupt, public debtors, and homeless.[46]
The Congress of Deputies had one seat per 50,000 inhabitants. Of these, those corresponding to larger urban areas were elected in multi-member constituencies using partial block voting: voters in constituencies electing ten seats or more could choose up to four candidates less that seats at stake; in those with between eight and ten seats, up to three less; in those with between four and eight seats, up to two less; and in those with between one and four seats, up to one less. The remaining seats were elected in single-member districts by plurality voting and distributed among the provinces of Spain according to population.[47][48] Candidates in uncontested seats were automatically elected.[49][50][d]
As a result of the aforementioned allocation, 310 single-member districts were established, and each Congress multi-member constituency (a total of 28, electing 98 seats) was entitled the following seats:[51]
| Seats | Constituencies |
|---|---|
| 8 | Madrid |
| 7 | Barcelona |
| 5 | Palma, Seville |
| 4 | Cartagena |
| 3 | Alicante, AlmerÃa, Badajoz, Burgos, Cádiz, Córdoba, Gran Canaria, Granada, Huelva, Jaén, Jerez de la Frontera, La Coruña, Lugo, Málaga, Murcia, Oviedo, Pamplona, Santander, Tarragona, Tenerife, Valencia, Valladolid, Zaragoza |
Voting for the elective part of the Senate was based on censitary suffrage, comprising Spanish male householders of voting age, residing in a Spanish municipality, with full political and civil rights, who met either of the following:[52]
- Being qualified electors (such as archbishops, bishops and cathedral chapter members, in the archdioceses; full academics, in the royal academies; university authorities and professors, in the universities; or provincial deputies);
- Being elected as delegates (either by members with three years of seniority (in the economic societies of Friends of the Country; or by major taxpayers for direct taxes and local authorities, in the local councils).
180 Senate seats were elected using indirect, two-round majority voting. Delegates chosen by local councilsâeach of which was assigned an initial minimum of one delegate, with one additional delegate for every six councillorsâvoted for senators together with provincial deputies. The provinces of Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia were allocated four seats each, and the rest three each, for a total of 150. The remaining 30 seats were allocated to special institutional districts (one each), including major archdioceses, royal academies, universities, and economic societies,[e] each elected by their own qualified electors or delegates.[53][54] Another 180 seats consisted of senators in their own right (such as the monarch's offspring and the heir apparent once coming of age (16), grandees of Spain with an income of Pts 60,000, certain general officersâcaptain generals and admiralsâthe Patriarch of the Indies and archbishops, and the heads of higher courts and state institutions[f] after two years of service), as well as senators for life directly appointed by the monarch.[55]
The law provided for by-elections to fill vacant seats during the legislative term.[56]
Candidates
Nomination rules
For the Congress, secular Spanish males of voting age, with full civil rights, could run for election. Causes of ineligibility applied to those excluded from voting or meeting any of the incompatibility rules for deputies, as well as to:[57]
- Public contractors, within their relevant territories;
- Holders of a number of territorial posts (such as government-appointed positions, not including government ministers and Central Administration employees; local and provincial employees; and provincial deputation members), within their areas of jurisdiction, during their term of office and up to one year afterwards.
- Servants in the judiciary or the prosecution ministry.
Additionally, candidates were required to either have previously served as deputies or be nominated by two current or former senators (or same-province deputies); three current or former provincial deputies (from the same province); or at least one twentieth of the electorate in the constituencies for which they sought election, disallowing electors from nominating more than one candidate (except in multi-member constituencies, which used the same partial block voting system for nominations as for elections).[58]
For the Senate, eligibility was limited to Spanish males over 35 years of age not under criminal prosecution, disfranchisement nor asset seizure, and who either qualified as senators in their own right or belonged (or had belonged) to certain categories:[59]
- Provided an income of Pts 7,500: the presidents of the Senate and the Congress; deputies serving in three different congresses or eight terms; government ministers; bishops; grandees of Spain not eligible as senators in their own right; and various senior officials after two years of service (such as certain general officersâlieutenant generals and vice admiralsâand members of higher courts and state institutions);[f] heads of diplomatic missions abroad (ambassadors after two years, and plenipotentiaries after four); heads and full academics in the royal academies; chief engineers; and full professors with four years of service;
- Provided an income of Pts 20,000 or being taxpayers with a minimum quota of Pts 4,000 in direct taxes (paid two years in advance): Spanish nobility; and former deputies, provincial deputies or mayors in provincial capitals or towns over 20,000;
- Having served as senators before the promulgation of the 1876 Constitution.
Other ineligibility provisions for the Senate also applied to a number of territorial officials within their areas of jurisdiction, during their term of office and up to three months afterwards; public contractors; tax collectors; and public debtors.[60]
Incompatibility rules barred combining:[61]
- The role of senator with other legislative roles (deputy, senator and local councillor, except those in Madrid; and provincial deputies within their respective provinces); or with any public post not explicitly permitted under Senate eligibility requirements;
- The role of deputy with any other civil, military or judicial post, with exceptionsâand as many as 40 deputies allowed to simultaneously benefit from theseâincluding a number of specific posts based in Madrid, such as any of the aforementioned ones (provided a public salary of Pts 12,500); senior court officials; university authorities and professors; chief engineers; and general officers.
Results
Congress of Deputies
 | ||||||
| Parties and alliances | Popular vote | Seats | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | A.29 | Cont. | Total | ||
| Conservative Party (PC) | 48 | 177 | 225 | |||
| Liberal Party (PL) | 22 | 62 | 84 | |||
| Liberal Democratic Party (PLD) | 12 | 21 | 33 | |||
| Regionalist League (LR) | 1 | 12 | 13 | |||
| Reformist Party (PRef) | 3 | 9 | 12 | |||
| RepublicanâSocialist Conjunction (CRS) | 1 | 11 | 12 | |||
| Republican Coalition (PRRâUFNR) | 1 | 10 | 11 | |||
| JaimistâIntegrist Coalition (CTâPI) | 2 | 6 | 8 | |||
| Social Defence Committee (CDS) | 0 | 1 | 1 | |||
| Autonomist Republican Union Party (PURA) | 0 | 1 | 1 | |||
| Independents (INDEP) | 3 | 5 | 8 | |||
| Total | 93 | 315 | 408 | |||
| Votes cast / turnout | ||||||
| Abstentions | ||||||
| Registered voters | ||||||
| Sources[a][62][63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70][71][72] | ||||||
Senate
 | ||
| Parties and alliances | Seats | |
|---|---|---|
| Conservative Party (PC) | 95 | |
| Liberal Party (PL) | 41 | |
| Liberal Democratic Party (PLD) | 12 | |
| Regionalist League (LR) | 6 | |
| JaimistâIntegrist Coalition (CTâPI) | 4 | |
| Reformist Party (PRef) | 3 | |
| RepublicanâSocialist Conjunction (CRS) | 2 | |
| Republican Coalition (PRRâUFNR) | 1 | |
| Social Defence Committee (CDS) | 1 | |
| Independents (INDEP) | 6 | |
| Archbishops (ARCH) | 9 | |
| Total elective seats | 180 | |
| Sources[72][73][74][75][76][77][78][79][80][81] | ||
Distribution by group
Notes
- Uncontested districts were those where the number of candidates was equal to or fewer than the available seats. Whenever vacancies remained, a by-election was held to fill the remaining seats.
- The following were considered as the major districts in each category:
- Archdioceses: Burgos, Granada, Santiago de Compostela, Seville, Tarragona, Toledo, Valencia, Valladolid, and Zaragoza.
- Royal academies: Spanish; History; Fine Arts of San Fernando; Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences; Moral and Political Sciences; and Medicine.
- Universities: Madrid, Barcelona, Granada, Oviedo, Salamanca, Santiago, Seville, Valencia, Valladolid, and Zaragoza.
- Economic societies of Friends of the Country: Madrid, Barcelona, León, Seville, and Valencia.
- These comprised the Council of State, the Supreme Court, the Court of Auditors and the Supreme Council of War and Navy.