Spain’s Transition to Democracy: 1977-1982
In October 1977, the Moncloa Pacts were signed by the government and representatives of the main opposition parties, unions, and employers. These pacts managed to reduce the external deficit and lower inflation, but their application was limited by the second oil crisis in 1979.
The Constitution of 1978
This constitution was the result of consensus among almost all parties. To achieve this, the text is comprehensive, detailed, and somewhat ambiguous. The constitution was approved by referendum on December 6, 1978, with 88% of the votes, and promulgated on December 29. The Constitution defines Spain as a “social and democratic state of law.” It recognizes popular sovereignty. The form of government is a parliamentary monarchy. The monarch is the head of state, but his power is severely limited; he reigns but does not govern. It establishes the division of powers with bicameral courts, whose members are elected by universal suffrage. Spain is defined as a national unit, but it recognizes and guarantees the right to autonomy of the nationalities and regions that integrate it, with broader skills and self-government. Castilian is the official language, but other languages are co-official in their respective regional territories. The state is non-denominational. It recognizes extensive rights and freedoms and includes an array of social and economic developments. In short, it constitutes a politically progressive constitution, a product of consensus, which allowed its legislative development to be assumed by both the left and the democratic right.
Consolidation and Crisis of Democratic UCD (1979-1982)
Adopted by the constitution, Suárez dissolved the courts and called new elections for March 1979. The UCD won again. During this period, the development of autonomous status took place. There was the possibility that all regions could become autonomous. They had to establish legislative bodies elected by universal suffrage and executive bodies. Two degrees of autonomy were established since the autonomous powers could receive different levels of skills and to a different degree.
The entire procedure was faster and could go directly to those historic nationalities, and even other nationalities if they met certain requirements and it was ratified by referendum. The statutes of autonomy and the institutions with which they are endowed were approved. The first were the Catalan and Basque in 1979, followed by Galicia and Andalusia in 1980, and then all the others, up to 17 autonomous communities. The result of all this meant the end of the centralized state and the beginning of a process that was not always easy. The first democratic municipal elections were also held in April 1979, with the victory of the left, usually the PSOE and the PSOE-PCE, in major cities, which announced the immediate difficulties of the UCD. The Statute of Workers and the Divorce Act were approved. Spain entered NATO with strong opposition from the left. The PSOE renounced Marxist ideology after an extraordinary congress of the party and hardened its opposition. The PCE suffered a crisis because Carrillo failed to control dissent. AP was reinforced by the political incorporation of the UCD. The UCD went into crisis. The PSOE presented a censure motion against the government in May 1980, and Suárez began to receive criticism from his own party. Abril Martorell, vice president of the government, resigned in July 1980, and Suárez in January 1981. The UCD elected Leopoldo Calvo Sotelo as his successor. On February 23, 1981, there was an attempted coup by Lieutenant Colonel of the Civil Guard, Tejero, during the voting session at the conference for his inauguration as president of the government. In Valencia, General Milans del Bosch declared a state of war and took out the tanks in the streets. The lack of support for the coup by military leaders and the firm stance against it by the king frustrated the operation. Calvo Sotelo could not stop the dissolution of the party, which suffered the abandonment of personnel from both the right and the left. In the October 1982 elections, the PSOE won by an absolute majority. This is the semi-final stage of the democratic transition in Spain.