The elections, in which the voting process started at 09:00 local time (10:00 GMT), were held in 12 of the 17 autonomous governments in the country (Aragon, Asturias, Canary Islands, Balearic Islands, Cantabria, Castilla La Mancha, Madrid, Valencia, Extremadura, La Rioja, Navarra, and Murcia) and will determine their local parliaments, the assemblies of the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla on the territory of North Africa, and 8,131
Political parties covered problems related to health, the economy, the drought, and immigration during the election campaign, particularly the nomination of some members of the terrorist group ETA and the allegations that votes were purchased by mail.
In the municipal elections, more than 60 thousand city council members and 736 members of the self-government parliament will be chosen.
The results of today's local elections are anticipated to provide insight into Spain's new political landscape because general elections are anticipated to take place at the end of the year.mayors.
The majority partner of the coalition government formed at the beginning of 2020, the Socialist Workers Party (PSOE), and its junior partner, Unidas Podemos (PP), have increased their candidate lists by 4% since the previous local elections took place four years ago. This is the first time in the history of the country's democracy that both the main opposition right-wing People's Party (PP) and its candidate list have done so. Before the general elections at the end of the year, the vote percentages of the extreme-right Vox party, which grew by 260, will be crucial.
Additionally, the vote of the Basque region-based EH Bildu party, It has nominated 37 individuals who have a history of convictions for involvement with the ETA terrorist group.
In local elections, there are also around 800,000 Muslim voters.
In Spain, the political party "Dignity and Citizenship Movement" (MDyC), which is active in Ceuta, made history by compiling its candidate list solely of Muslims.
The mayorships of Barcelona, where Ada Colau is seeking reelection for a third time, and Madrid, where the PP currently holds the majority, are the most puzzling outcomes of the local elections, in which roughly 243 thousand more voters will cast their ballots than four years ago. The autonomous governments of Extremadura, Aragon, and Valencia are listed.
One of the first elected officials to cast a ballot was Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who did so at the Nuestra Senora del Buen Consejo school in the Spanish city of Madrid for the municipal elections, where 35.1 million people were registered to vote.
At 20:00 local time (21:00 GMT), voting will be over.