Spanish Constitution of 1876: Monarchy, Parties, and Electoral System
Constitution of 1876
The Constitution of 1876, in force until 1923, has been the longest in the history of Spain.
The essentials are:
The monarchy was the essential part of the political system. The king became the arbiter of the situation and expanded his powers: to participate in the legislative function, he could summon, suspend, and close the Cortes, appoint ministers, and had supreme power over the armed forces, creating an openness between the monarch and the military.
It took the shared sovereignty between the Cortes and the King.
Cortes were established as bicameral, consisting of a Congress and a Senate.
It was agreed that religious tolerance was the state religion. Catholicism was admitted, but other religions were hidden in the private sphere. The Catholic Church was very strong in the Restoration, especially in education.
In 1878, the vote was based on a census, which gave the franchise to owners and individuals with a high level of education.
In 1890, universal male suffrage was reinstated.
1. Political Parties
There were two groups that took turns in power: the Liberal-Conservative Party and the Liberal-Fusionist Party. These were notable parties, and links among their members were established by personal loyalties. The internal party unity was very precarious.
1.1 The Liberal-Conservative Political Party (Canovas)
Formed from the integration of former moderate Unionists, a faction of liberalism, and the Catholic sector.
Its ideology was based on conservative liberalism and was largely dominated by agricultural landowners and the high industrial and financial bourgeoisie.
1.2 The Liberal-Fusionist Party (Sagasta)
Sagasta’s progressivism was out of order. He abandoned the defense of national sovereignty and accepted the Bourbon dynasty and universal male suffrage.
It was formed by progressives, some unionist politicians unhappy with Canovas, and some Republicans. They were among the senior and middle classes.
2. The Turn
The Pact of Pardo (1885) established a system of rotation of power between Liberals and Conservatives that lasted until the First World War.
The elections were manipulated so that the result would satisfy the new government.
2.1 The Electoral Distortion
The operation of the turn rested on two agreed conditions:
Expansion of the Crown’s power as an arbitrator between parties, which ensured the stability of the regime but prevented democratization.
The boxing in of the candidates.
The rigging was electoral fraud, to which they resorted when the agreement between the parties did not work (buying votes, forging documents, etc.).
2.2 The Practice of the Turn
Between 1875 and 1885, conservatives gained power and governed continuously.
They designed the 1876 constitution and the electoral law of 1878, which restored the franchise based on a census.
Liberals got into government without using force. The alternation of power reached its height from the Pact of Pardo onward.
The Conservatives lost power to the Liberals, who performed a task of modernizing the state through:
Commercial Code and Civil Code.
Jury Act and Association Act.
Suffrage Law.