Congress of Deputies

The Congress of Deputies (Spanish: Congreso de los Diputados) is the lower house of the Cortes Generales, Spain's legislative branch, with the upper house being the Senate. It meets in the Palace of the Parliament (Palacio de las Cortes) in Madrid.

Congress has 350 members elected from fifty-two constituencies (the fifty provinces and two autonomous cities) using closed list D'Hondt proportional representation. These deputies serve four-year terms. The leader of the Congress is the President of the Congress of Deputies, who is chosen by the members after an election.

The main groups in Congress are parliamentary groups and parliamentary committees (Spanish: comisiones). All members must join a parliamentary group, which represents political parties. These groups speak as one voice through their spokesperson. Because of this, members mainly act as part of their group rather than as individuals, except when asking questions.

After the 2019 general election, Spain had 168 female deputies, or 48% of all members, the highest percentage of women in parliament in Europe at that time. This number fell to 44.3% after the elections in 2023.

Constitutional position

House makeup

Composition

Section 68.1 of the Spanish Constitution says that the Congress of Deputies must have at least 300 and no more than 400 members. Right now, there are 350 members, as decided by the 1985 Electoral Act.

Electoral system

The Spanish Constitution says that members of the Congress are chosen by universal, free, equal, direct, and secret suffrage. Elections are held every four years or earlier if needed. Members are elected using proportional representation with closed lists in each area.

There are 52 areas for the election, which include the 50 provinces of Spain and two autonomous cities (Ceuta and Melilla). Each province gets at least two seats, and Ceuta and Melilla each get one seat. The rest of the seats are shared based on the number of people living there.

After an election, seats are given to the lists of candidates in each area using the D'Hondt method. This helps make sure that the number of seats a group gets is about the same as the number of votes they got.

Mandate

The time a member serves ends four years after they are elected or when the Cortes are closed down. Only the Monarch can close down Parliament when asked by the President of the Government. During their time in office, members have some rights to help them do their job.

Bodies of the Congress

The Congress of Deputies has its own rules to manage itself. It has different groups to help it work.

Governing bodies

The main groups that manage the Congress are the President, the Bureau, and the Board of Spokespersons.

The President of the Congress of Deputies is the main leader of the house. The Bureau of the Congress of Deputies helps manage the daily work of the Congress. The Board of Spokespersons of the Congress of Deputies decides what the Congress will discuss.

Working bodies

The main groups that do the work of the Congress are the Plenary, the Committees, the Permanent Deputation, and the Parliamentary Groups.

The Plenary is where all members meet to make big decisions. There are two main times for meetings: September to December and February to June. Special meetings can be called by the Prime Minister of Spain or a big group of members.

The Committees help the Congress by looking at bills and asking questions to the government. There are different types of committees, and they can make laws or check on the government.

The Permanent Deputation makes sure the Congress can still work even when it is not in its main meeting times.

All members are part of a Parliamentary Group that matches their party or beliefs. If a member cannot join a group, they join a special group called the Mixed Group.

Composition of the XV legislature

Main articles: 15th Cortes Generales and 2023 Spanish general election

The XV legislature of Spain started on 17 August 2023 after the Cortes Generales met for the first time, following the 2023 general election.

Presidency of the Congress of Deputies

Main article: President of the Congress of Deputies

The Presidency of the Congress of Deputies is led by a person called the President. This President helps manage the work of the Congress, which is one part of Spain's government that makes laws.

Congress of Deputies building

The Palacio de las Cortes is a grand building with a neoclassical style. It was designed by Narciso Pascual Colomer and built between 1843 and 1850. Located in Madrid, the building’s front shows a sculpture of Spain holding a young girl, with other figures nearby that stand for ideas like Justice, Peace, Science, and more. The artist Ponciano Ponzano also made bronze lions for the steps leading to the building.