Motions of no confidence in Spain Facts for Kids

The outgoing Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy (right) congratulates the incoming Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez (left) after the no confidence vote on 1 June 2018.

A motion of no confidence in Spain is a special way for the parliament to show it no longer trusts the leader of the government. This leader is called the Prime Minister (or "President of the Government"). If the motion passes, the Prime Minister has to resign.

In Spain, this motion is "constructive." This means that when politicians propose a motion to remove the current Prime Minister, they must also suggest a new person to take their place. It's also "continuist," meaning it doesn't automatically lead to new elections. The normal election schedule stays the same.

The idea of a motion of no confidence for the national Prime Minister is written in the Spanish Constitution of 1978. So far, there have been six such motions in the main parliament, called the Congress of Deputies. These were against Prime Ministers Suárez (1980), González (1987), Rajoy (2017 and 2018), and Sánchez (2020, 2023). Only one of these motions was successful. This happened on June 1, 2018, when the motion against Mariano Rajoy passed. Pedro Sánchez then became the new Prime Minister.

Motions of no confidence can also happen in the parliaments of Spain's different regions, called "autonomous communities." Each region has its own rules for this. Across all regions and autonomous cities, 31 motions have been presented, and 9 of them were successful.

How a Motion of No Confidence Works
Past Motions of No Confidence
- In the Congress of Deputies
- In Autonomous Parliaments
Images for kids
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How a Motion of No Confidence Works

Prime Minister Felipe González during the motion of no confidence in 1987.

The rules for a motion of no confidence against the national Prime Minister are in the Spanish Constitution and the rules of the Congress of Deputies.

Who can propose it? At least one-tenth of the members of the Congress of Deputies must propose it. This means about 35 members.
What must it include? The motion must name a candidate who they want to become the new Prime Minister.

After the motion is presented, the Congress leaders check it. They have up to 7 days to make sure it follows all the rules. Once it's approved, there's a two-day period where other groups can propose their own alternative motions. These must also be signed by 35 members and include a new Prime Minister candidate. The debate on these motions cannot start until this two-day period is over.

Next, the leader of the Congress sets a date for the debate and vote. This must happen within 20 days. However, if the national budget is being discussed, the 20-day countdown starts after the budget is finished. The vote cannot happen until at least five days after the motion was first presented.

To pass, a motion of no confidence needs an absolute majority of votes. This means more than half of all the members of the Congress of Deputies must vote "yes." If the motion passes, the current government must resign within 24 hours. The King of Spain then officially appoints the new Prime Minister (the candidate named in the motion) within 15 days.

If a motion of no confidence does not pass, the groups who proposed it cannot try again during the same parliamentary session.

While a motion of no confidence is being processed, the Prime Minister cannot dissolve the Congress and call for early elections. This rule stops the Prime Minister from avoiding the vote by simply ending the parliament. However, the Prime Minister can choose to resign voluntarily. If they resign, they might stay on as a temporary leader, but the Congress can then choose a new Prime Minister with a simple majority vote.

Past Motions of No Confidence

So far, there have been six motions of no confidence at the national level. There have also been many in the regional parliaments. Here are the lists:

In the Congress of Deputies

Date			Result (required to win)
30 May 1980	Adolfo Suárez (UCD)	Felipe González (PSOE)	152–166 (176)	Rejected
30 Mar 1987	Felipe González (PSOE)	Antonio Hernández Mancha (AP)	67–194 (176)	Rejected
14 Jun 2017	Mariano Rajoy (PP)	Pablo Iglesias (Podemos)	82–170 (176)	Rejected
1 Jun 2018	Mariano Rajoy (PP)	Pedro Sánchez (PSOE)	180–169 (176)	Approved
22 Oct 2020	Pedro Sánchez (PSOE)	Santiago Abascal (Vox)	52–298 (176)	Rejected
22 Mar 2023	Pedro Sánchez (PSOE)	Ramón Tamames (INDEP) Proposed by Vox	53–201 (175)	Rejected

In Autonomous Parliaments

The Balearic Islands and Andalusia are the only regions where a motion of no confidence has never been proposed.

Date	Autonomous community			Result (required to win)
1 Oct 1982	Catalonia	Jordi Pujol (CDC)	Josep Benet (PSUC)	21–56 (68)	Rejected
23 Sep 1987	Galicia	Gerardo Fernández Albor (AP)	Fernando González Laxe (PSdG)	40–29 (36)	Approved
21 Jun 1989	Community of Madrid	Joaquín Leguina (PSOE)	Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón (PP)	48–40 (49)	Rejected
8 Jan 1990	La Rioja	Joaquín Espert (PP)	José Ignacio Pérez Sáenz (PSOE)	17–13 (17)	Approved
5 Dec 1990	Cantabria	Juan Hormaechea (UPCA)	Jaime Blanco (PSOE)	26–12 (20)	Approved
31 Mar 1993	Canary Islands	Jerónimo Saavedra (PSOE)	Manuel Hermoso (CC)	31–23 (31)	Approved
1 Jul 1993	Cantabria	Juan Hormaechea (UPCA)	Jaime Blanco (PSOE)	18–21 (20)	Rejected
15 Sep 1993	Aragon	Emilio Eiroa (PAR)	José Marco (PSOE)	34–33 (34)	Approved
5 Jan 1994	Cantabria	Juan Hormaechea (UPCA)	Jaime Blanco (PSOE)	18–17 (20)	Rejected
21 Dec 1994	Aragon	José Marco (PSOE)	Emilio Eiroa (PAR)	32–30 (34)	Rejected
10 Mar 1999	Asturias	Sergio Marqués (URAS)	Ovidio Sánchez (PP)	16–6 (23)	Rejected
5 Oct 2000	Basque Country	Juan José Ibarretxe (PNV)	Nicolás Redondo (PSE–EE)	32–29 (38)	Rejected
5 Oct 2000	Basque Country	Juan José Ibarretxe (PNV)	Carlos Iturgaiz (PP)	32–29 (38)	Rejected
29 Jan 2001	Galicia	Manuel Fraga (PP)	Xosé Manuel Beiras (BNG)	18–41 (38)	Rejected
18 Oct 2001	Catalonia	Jordi Pujol (CDC)	Pasqual Maragall (PSC)	55–68 (68)	Rejected
7 Nov 2001	Canary Islands	Román Rodríguez (CC)	Juan Carlos Alemán (PSOE)	19–39 (31)	Rejected
12 Dec 2002	Galicia	Manuel Fraga (PP)	Emilio Pérez Touriño (PSdeG)	34–41 (38)	Rejected
12 Dec 2002	Galicia	Manuel Fraga (PP)	Xosé Manuel Beiras (BNG)	34–41 (38)	Rejected
Withdrawn 11 Mar 2005	Catalonia	Pasqual Maragall (PSC)	Josep Piqué (PP)	N/A	Withdrawn
4 Oct 2006	Valencian Community	Francisco Camps (PP)	Joan Ignasi Pla (PSPV)	35–47 (45)	Rejected
18 Apr 2013	Navarre	Yolanda Barcina (UPN)	Juan Carlos Longás (Aralar–NaBai)	18–23 (26)	Rejected
14 May 2014	Extremadura	José Antonio Monago (PP)	Guillermo Fernández Vara (PSOE)	30–32 (33)	Rejected
Withdrawn 4 Apr 2017	Region of Murcia	Pedro Antonio Sánchez (PP)	Rafael González Tovar (PSOE)	N/A	Resigned
8 Jun 2017	Community of Madrid	Cristina Cifuentes (PP)	Lorena Ruiz-Huerta (Podemos)	27–64 (65)	Rejected
Withdrawn 25 Apr 2018	Community of Madrid	Cristina Cifuentes (PP)	Ángel Gabilondo (PSOE)	N/A	Resigned
7 Oct 2019	Catalonia	Quim Torra (JuntsxCat)	Lorena Roldán (Cs)	40–76 (68)	Rejected
Dismissed 11 Mar 2021	Community of Madrid	Isabel Díaz Ayuso (PP)	Mónica García (Más Madrid)	N/A	Dismissed
Dismissed 11 Mar 2021	Community of Madrid	Isabel Díaz Ayuso (PP)	Ángel Gabilondo (PSOE)	N/A	Dismissed
18 Mar 2021	Region of Murcia	Fernando López Miras (PP)	Ana Martínez Vidal (Cs)	21–23 (23)	Rejected
22 Mar 2021	Castile and León	Alfonso Fernández Mañueco (PP)	Luis Tudanca (PSOE)	37–41 (41)	Rejected