Electoral system The
Parliament of Galicia was the
devolved,
unicameral legislature of the
autonomous community of
Galicia, having legislative power in regional matters as defined by the
Spanish Constitution and the
Galician Statute of Autonomy, as well as the ability to vote confidence in or withdraw it from a
regional president. Voting for the Parliament was on the basis of
universal suffrage, which comprised all nationals over 18 years of age, registered in Galicia and in full enjoyment of their political rights. Amendments to the electoral law in 2022 abolished the "begged" or expat vote system (), under which
Spaniards abroad were required to
apply for voting before being permitted to vote. The expat vote system was attributed responsibility for a major decrease in the turnout of Spaniards abroad during the years it had been in force. The 75 members of the Parliament of Galicia were elected using the
D'Hondt method and a
closed list proportional representation, with an
electoral threshold of five percent of valid votes—which included blank ballots—being applied in each constituency. Seats were allocated to constituencies, corresponding to the
provinces of
A Coruña,
Lugo,
Ourense and
Pontevedra, with each being allocated an initial minimum of 10 seats and the remaining 35 being distributed in proportion to their populations. As a result of the aforementioned allocation, each Parliament constituency was entitled the following seats: In smaller constituencies, the use of the electoral method resulted in an
effective threshold based on the
district magnitude and the distribution of votes among candidacies.
Election date The term of the Parliament of Galicia 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 the twenty-fifth day prior to the expiration date of parliament and published on the following day in the Official Journal of Galicia (DOG), with election day taking place between the fifty-fourth and the sixtieth day from publication. The
previous election was held on 12 July 2020, which meant that the legislature's term would have expired on 12 July 2024. The election decree was required to be published in the DOG no later than 18 June 2024, with the election taking place up to the sixtieth day from publication, setting the latest possible election date for the Parliament on 16 August 2024. Following
Alberto Núñez Feijóo's resignation as president of Galicia to become PP national leader, it was speculated that his successor,
Alfonso Rueda, could seek to call a snap election for some time throughout 2023 or even to make it coincide with the
scheduled general election in December 2023. Following
Pedro Sánchez's surprise announcement of a snap general election on 29 May 2023, Rueda ruled out a simultaneous regional election "because Galicia cannot be infected by instability". It was later commented that a good result for Feijóo in the general election could prompt Rueda to trigger a snap election for late 2023, but the close result on 23 July prevented this from materializing. Following Sánchez's investiture in November 2023, rumours again emerged that Rueda was planning to hold a snap election for early 2024. Asked on 27 November on whether the Galician election would be held simultaneously with the
Basque regional election as had been the case in the four previous occasions, Rueda proclaimed that "Galicia has its own way"; later, the president of the
Basque Nationalist Party (PNV)
Andoni Ortuzar said in an interview that the Galician election seemed "like it is going to go at full speed", with the Galician government allegedly not wishing a simultaneous election call. On 30 November, Rueda acknowledged that he would seek a Galician-only election "without a doubt (...) if that is in the interest of Galicia", and that election preparations were already underway. 18 February has been commented by the media as the most likely date for a snap election to be held. Finally on 21 December, Rueda announced a snap election to be held on 18 February 2024. While
Basque lehendakari Iñigo Urkullu was informed of this decision, he distanced himself from Rueda arguing that "the Basque Country is not Galicia", thus paving the way for both elections to be held separately for the first time since
2005. The Parliament of Galicia was officially dissolved on 26 December 2023 after the publication of the dissolution decree in the DOG, setting the election date for 18 February 2024 and scheduling for the chamber to reconvene on 18 March. ==Parliamentary composition==