Electoral Reform in the Canary Islands: Origin, Scope, Implementation and Impact

Abstract

The reform of the Statute of Autonomy of the Canary Islands, approved by Organic Law 2/2018, of 5 November, has finally changed the complex regime of the regional parliamentary elections, persistently demanded by constitutional scholars and civil society. This reform affects the dimension of the Parliament of the Canary Islands, involves the creation of a new regional constituency, which coexists with the traditional island constituencies, alters the apportionment of seats and drastically reduces the electoral thresholds. Considering that the new electoral regime must be applied in the regional elections held in May 2019, we offer an analysis of the legal instruments used for its implementation. Finally, and taking into account the results of the aforementioned elections, we will present some reflections on the modest practical impact of the reform.