Valencia City Council election, 2011

Valencia City Council election, 2011

22 May 2011

All 33 seats in the Valencia City Council 17 seats needed for a majority Registered 579,733 4.8% Turnout 402,400 (69.4%) 1.0 pp   First party Second party   Leader Rita Barberá Joan Calabuig Party PP PSPV–PSOE Leader since 1991 3 October 2010 Last election 21 seats, 56.7% 12 seats, 33.8% Seats won 20 8 Seat change 1 4 Popular vote 208,727 86,440 Percentage 52.5% 21.8% Swing 4.2 pp 12.0 pp   Third party Fourth party   Leader Joan Ribó Amadeu Sanchis Party Compromís IU Leader since 7 May 2010 2004 Last election Did not contest 0 seats, 4.8% Seats won 3 2 Seat change 3 2 Popular vote 35,881 28,489 Percentage 9.0% 7.2% Swing New party 2.4 pp

Mayor before election Rita Barberá PP Elected Mayor Rita Barberá PP

The 2011 Valencia City Council election was held on Sunday, 22 May 2011, to elect the 9th Valencia City Council, the unicameral local legislature of the municipality of Valencia. At stake were all 33 seats in the City Council, determining the Mayor of Valencia.

The election resulted in a strong victory for the ruling People's Party (PP), which renewed the absolute majority it commanded in the City Council. As a result, incumbent Mayoress Rita Barberá was able to be re-elected for an unprecedented sixth term in office, after 20 years in charge. On the other hand, the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) plummeted to barely above 20% of the share, obtaining its worst result in a City Council election up until that point after losing 4 seats, 12 percentage points and 54,000 votes. Among the causes of the PSOE's debacle were the growing unpopularity of Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, the perceived inability of the PSOE national government to cope with the economic crisis and the general perception at the time that the PP would do better.

Also entering the City Council were the Compromís coalition, made up of the Valencian Nationalist Bloc (Bloc), Initiative of the Valencian People (IdPV) and Greens Equo of the Valencian Country (Verds), which emerged as the third political force in the city; and United Left of the Valencian Country (EUPV), the regional branch of IU, which had been left out of the City Council in the previous election.

Electoral system

The number of seats in the Valencia City Council was determined by the population count. According to the municipal electoral law, the population-seat relationship on each municipality was to be established on the following scale:

Additionally, for populations greater than 100,000, 1 seat was to be added per each 100,000 inhabitants or fraction, according to the most updated census data, and adding 1 more seat if the resulting seat count gives an even number. As the updated population census for the 2011 election was 809,267, the Valencia City Council size was set to 33 seats.

All City Council members were elected in a single multi-member district, consisting of the Valencia municipality, using the D'Hondt method and a closed-list proportional representation system. Voting was on the basis of universal suffrage in a secret ballot. Only lists polling above 5% of valid votes in all of the municipality (which include blank ballots—for none of the above) were entitled to enter the seat distribution.

The Spanish municipal electoral law established a clause stating that, if no candidate was to gather an absolute majority of votes to be elected as mayor of a municipality, the candidate of the most-voted party would be automatically elected to the post.^[1]

Results

← Summary of the 22 May 2011 Valencia City Council election results →

Party		Vote			Seats
		Votes	%	±pp	Won	+/−
	People's Party (PP)	208,727	52.54	4.13	20	1
	Socialist Party of the Valencian Country (PSPV-PSOE)	86,440	21.76	12.02	8	4
	Commitment Coalition (Compromís)	35,881	9.03	New	3	3
	United Left of the Valencian Country (EUPV)	28,489	7.17	2.40	2	2
	Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD)	11,243	2.83	New	0	±0
	Greens and Ecopacifists (VyE)	5,177	1.30	New	0	±0
	Valencian Coalition (CVa)	2,219	0.56	0.79	0	±0
	Spain 2000 (E-2000)	1,920	0.48	0.29	0	±0
	Anti-Bullfighting Party Against Mistreatment of Animals (PACMA)	1,771	0.45	New	0	±0
	Republican Left of the Valencian Country-Municipal Agreement (ERPV-AM)	980	0.25	0.01	0	±0
	For a Fairer World (PUM+J)	752	0.19	0.03	0	±0
	United by Valencia (UxV)	690	0.17	0.08	0	±0
	Family and Life Party (PFyV)	511	0.13	New	0	±0
	Humanist Party (PH)	488	0.12	0.07	0	±0
	Liberal Democratic Centre (CDL)	482	0.12	New	0	±0
	Communist Party of the Peoples of Spain (PCPE)	443	0.11	0.02	0	±0
	Party of the Old and Freelancers (PDMA)	387	0.10	New	0	±0

Parties with less than 0.1% of the vote		1,995	0.50	–	0	±0
	National Democracy (DN)	343	0.09	0.03	0	±0
	Foreigners' Party (PdEx)	314	0.08	New	0	±0
	Communist Unification of Spain (UCE)	295	0.07	New	0	±0
	SOS Democracy (SOSDM)	277	0.07	New	0	±0
	Valencian Nationalist Left (ENV-RVPVE)	275	0.07	New	0	±0
	The Republic (La República)	271	0.07	New	0	±0
	Authentic Falange (FA)	220	0.06	New	0	±0

	Blank ballots	8,661	2.18	0.82
Total		397,256	100.00		33	±0
Valid votes		397,256	98.72	0.84
Invalid votes		5,144	1.28	0.84
Votes cast / turnout		402,400	69.41	0.97
Abstentions		177,333	30.59	0.97
Registered voters		579,733
Source: Ministry of the Interior

References

Elections in Valencia
Valencia City Council	1979 1983 1987 1991 1995 1999 2003 2007 2011 2015