# Ayuntamiento of Valencia

The Ayuntamiento of Valencia, or Valencia City Council, is the institution that is responsible for governing the city and municipality of Valencia (Spain). It is called in Valencian: Ajuntament de València or Spanish: Ayuntamiento de Valencia. It is presided over by the mayor of Valencia, who since 1979 has been democratically elected by universal suffrage. Since 2023, the position is held by María José Catalá, of the People's Party. The institution is located and holds formal meetings in the Valencia City Hall or in Valencian: Palau consistorial de València and in Spanish: Casa Consistorial de Valencia. The building is also often called the Ayuntamiento by metonymy.

## Operation

The City Council is the group of political representation of citizens in the municipal government. It directly assumes the representation of the community and determines actions on the issues confronting the city.
The councilors of the City of Valencia are chosen by universal suffrage in elections held every four years. The D'Hondt system is the mathematical algorithm used in Spain to distribute the councilors of the city councils in proportion to the votes obtained by each candidacy.

## History

Since the recovery of democracy in Spain, nine municipal elections have been held, and the city has been governed by three political parties, the PSOE, the PP and Compromís. From the first municipal elections in 1979 until 1991, the PSOE governed the city. During these years there were three mayors, Fernando Martínez Castellano (1979), Ricard Pérez Casado (1979-1988), and Clementina Ródenas Villena (1988-1991). While from 1991 to 2015, the PP has governed the city under the leadership of mayor Rita Barberá Nolla. From the elections of May 2015 and until the elections of 2023, Joan Ribó of Compromís held the mayor's office, with the support of the PSPV in the two legislatures of his mandate and València en Comú during the first. Since the municipal elections of May 2023, María José Catalá of the People's Party of the Valencian Community is the mayor of the city but avoided a formal coalition with Vox, opting for governing in minority with specific pacts.

### Investiture agreements or government coalitions

Since 1979, the political parties represented in the City Council have reached six occasions to form government through coalition when none of them reached an absolute majority of seats located in 17 councilors. The parties that agreed to obtain the government of the city after the elections and the number of representatives they added is indicated in the following table:
| Mandato | Partidos implicados | Concejales |
| 1979-1983 | PSOE+PCPV | 19 / 33 (58%) |
| 1987-1991 | PSOE+IU/UPV | 15 / 33 (45%) |
| 1995-1999 | PP+UV | 17 / 33 (52%) |
| 2015-2019 | Compromís+PSPV-PSOE+VeC | 17 / 33 (52%) |
| 2019-2023 | Compromís+PSPV|PSPV-PSOE | 17 / 33 (52%) |
| 2023-2027 | PP+Vox | 17 / 33 (52%) |

### Mayoralty or Alcaldía

After the 1979 Spanish local elections, the Ayuntamiento of Valencia was led by these mayors:
| Alcaldesa/Alcalde | Start of Term | End of Term | Political Party |
| Para los alcaldes desde el año 1840 al 1979 véase el anexo. |||||
| Fernando Martínez Castellano | 1979 | 1979 | PSPV-PSOE |
| Ricard Pérez Casado | 1979 | 1988 | PSPV-PSOE |
| es:Clementina Ródenas Villena | 1988 | 1991 | PSPV-PSOE |
| Rita Barberá Nolla | 1991 | 2015 | Partido Popular |
| Joan Ribó i Canut | 2015 | 2023 | Compromís |
| María José Catalá Verdet | 2023 | En el cargo | Partido Popular |

## Composition of the Ayuntamiento
### Coucil of the Ayuntamiento

For the City Council of 2023-2027, The municipal corporation is made up of 33 councilors.
| Political Party | Councilor | Portfolio |
| Partido Popular | María José Catalá Verdet | Mayor |
| Partido Popular | María José Ferrer San Segundo | First Deputy Mayor |
| Partido Popular | Julia Climent Monzó | Third Deputy Mayor |
| Partido Popular | Juan Manuel Giner Corell | Fourth Deputy Mayor |
| Partido Popular | Juan Carlos Caballero Montañés | Councilor and Spokesperson for the Ayuntamiento and the Municipal PP |
| Partido Popular | Paula María Llobet Vilarrasa | Fifth Deputy Mayor |
| Partido Popular | Santiago Ballester Casabuena | Sixth Deputy Mayor |
| Partido Popular | Jesús Carbonell Aguilar | Seventh Deputy Mayor |
| Partido Popular | José Marí Olano | Councilor |
| Partido Popular | José Luis Moreno Maicas | Councilor |
| Partido Popular | Carlos Luis Mundina Gómez | Councilor |
| Partido Popular | Marta Torrado de Castro | Councilor |
| Partido Popular | María del Rocío Gil Uncio | Councilor |
| Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | Carmen Luisa (Papi) Robles Galindo | Councilor and Municipal Spokesperson for Compromís |
| Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | Gloria Amparo Tello Company | Councilor |
| Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | Pere Sixte Fuset i Tortosa | Councilor |
| Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | Sergi Campillo Fernández | Councilor |
| Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | Lucía Beamud Villanueva | ConcCouncilorejala |
| Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | Giuseppe Grezzi | Councilor |
| Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | Ferran Puchades Vila | Councilor |
| Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | Eva Coscollà Grau | Councilor |
| Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | Lluïsa Notario Villanueva | Councilor |
| PSPV-PSOE | Borja Jesús Sanjuán Roca | Councilor and Municipal Spokesperson for PSPV-PSOE |
| PSPV-PSOE | María Teresa Ibáñez Giménez | Councilor |
| PSPV-PSOE | Nuria Llopis Borrego | Councilor |
| PSPV-PSOE | Javier Ismael Mateo García | Councilor |
| PSPV-PSOE | Elisa Valía Cotanda | Councilor |
| PSPV-PSOE | María Pérez Herrero | Councilor |
| PSPV-PSOE | Borja Santamaría Herrero | Councilor |
| Vox | Juan Manuel Bádenas Carpio | Second Deputy Mayor and Municipal Spokesperson for Vox |
| Vox | José Vicente Gosálbez Payá | Councilor |
| Vox | Mónica Gil Cano | Councilor |
| Vox | Cecilia Carmen Herrero Camilleri | Councilor |

#### Elected Councilors who have left office

| Councilor | Party | Date Resigned | Replaced by | Inauguration |
| Joan Ribó Canut | Compromís:Acord per Guanyar | 27 de marzo de 2024 | Lluïsa Notario Villanueva | 30 de abril de 2024 |
| Sandra Gómez López | PSPV-PSOE | 12 de julio de 2024 | Borja Santamaría Herrero | 23 de julio de 2024 |

### Local Government Board

The Local Government Board is a group that collaborates with the mayor on the executive and administrative functions of the city government. As president of the Local Government Board, the mayor appoints the other members, whose number cannot exceed 11, not including the president, which is one third of the 33 seats on the City Council. For the 2023-2027 legislature, the Local Government Board includes two members of Vox as part of the alliance.
| Member | Party | Primary Portfolio |
| María José Catalá Verdet | PP | Alcaldesa-Presidenta |
| María José Ferrer San Segundo | PP | First Deputy Mayor |
| Juan Manuel Bádenas Carpio | Vox | Second Deputy Mayor |
| Julia Climent Monzó | PP | Third Deputy Mayor |
| Juan Manuel Giner Corell | PP | Fourth Deputy Mayor |
| Juan Carlos Caballero Montañés | PP | Spokesperson for the City Council |
| José Marí Olano | PP | Councilor |
| José Luis Moreno Maicas | PP | Councilor |
| Paula María Llobet Vilarrasa | PP | Fifth Deputy Mayor |
| Santiago Ballester Casabuena | PP | Sixth Deputy Mayor |
| Jesús Carbonell Aguilar | PP | Seventh Deputy Mayor |
| Cecilia Carmen Herrero Camilleri | Vox | Councilor |

### Government Departments

The different powers exercised by the City Council can be grouped into various areas of government according to their theme and similarity of function as determined by the mayor. Each department has a deputy mayor or councilor to direct, plan, coordinate, and define the political objectives. In addition, each department leaders will have councilors delegated to direct the activity of the department. For the 2023-2027 legislature, the Valencia City Council is composed of the mayor's area and 11 other areas of government with the following delegated departments:
| Department | Leaders | Party | Delegacion |
| Alcaldía | María José Catalá Verdet | PP | Alcaldesa |
| Alcaldía | Juan Carlos Caballero Montañés | PP | Institutional Relations and relations with other administrations. Press and Media. Spokesperson for the Municipal Government. |
| Alcaldía | José Marí Olano | PP | Large Projects |
| Alcaldía | Paula María Llobet Vilarrasa | PP | Turism. Innovation, Technology, Digital Agenda, and Attracting Investments |
| Finance and Participation | María José Ferrer San Segundo | PP | Finance and Taxes. City Districts, Participation, and Neighborhood Action. |
| Finance and Participation | Juan Carlos Caballero Montañés | PP | Transparency, Information and Advocacy |
| Employment, Entrepreneurship, and Training. | Juan Manuel Bádenas Carpio | Vox | Employment and Training |
| Employment, Entrepreneurship, and Training. | Cecilia Carmen Herrero Camilleri | Vox | Entrepreneurship |
| Heritage. Human and Technical Resources | Julia Climent Monzó | PP | Human Resources. Central Technical Services. Hiring. |
| Heritage. Human and Technical Resources | José Marí Olano | PP | Patrimony. Administrative Controls. |
| Security and Mobility | Jesús Carbonell Aguilar | PP | City Police. Transportation. Public Spaces. |
| Security and Mobility | Juan Carlos Caballero Montañés | PP | Fire Department. Civil Protection. |
| Security and Mobility | Santiago Ballester Casabuena | PP | Commerce and Markets |
| Urban Planning, Housing, and Licensing | Juan Manuel Giner Corell | PP | Housing. Management of Construction and Infrastructure Maintenance. Urban Planning and Management. Licensing and Permitting. |
| Parks, Gardens, and Natural Spaces | Juan Manuel Bádenas Carpio | Vox | Parks and Gardens |
| Parks, Gardens, and Natural Spaces | José Vicente Gosálbez Payá | Vox | Saler Forest. Albufera Natural Park |
| Parks, Gardens, and Natural Spaces | Mónica Gil Cano | Vox | Beaches |
| Parks, Gardens, and Natural Spaces | Cecilia Carmen Herrero Camilleri | Vox | Agriculture |
| Residuos, mejora climática y gestión del agua | Carlos Luis Mundina Gómez | PP | Cleaning and Waste Management. Integral Water Cycle. Climate, Acoustic, and Energy Efficiency Improvement. Cemeteries and Funeral Services. |
| Family, Seniors and Traditions. | Mónica Gil Cano | Vox | Family, Youth and Childhood. Festivals and Traditions. |
| Family, Seniors and Traditions. | José Vicente Gosálbez Payá | Vox | Senior Citizens. Health and Consumption. |
| Social Welfare. | Marta Torrado de Castro | PP | Social Services. |
| Social Welfare. | María del Rocío Gil Uncio | PP | Equality |
| Cultura, educación, deportes y Fallas | Jose Luis Moreno Maicas | PP | Cultural action, heritage and cultural resources. |
| Cultura, educación, deportes y Fallas | María del Rocío Gil Uncio | PP | Education. Sports. |
| Cultura, educación, deportes y Fallas | Santiago Ballester Casabuena | PP | Fallas |

### Municipal Boards

The Municipal Boards are decentralized management bodies whose purpose is to bring municipal management closer to the neighbors and encourage their participation in matters of municipal competence. Each board has a President and a Vice President who are appointed and dismissed by the Mayor or the plenary council. The President represents the Mayor within the scope of the City Council and ensures the correct application of the regulations and programs of the City of Valencia in its specific area. The territory of a particular Municipal Board does not necessarily coincide with the districts or neighborhoods of Valencia (Divisions of Valencia in Castilian).

### Suburban Mayor's Offices

In the municipality of Valencia, in addition to the main urban nucleus of the city, there are 15 other urban centers called pedanías that are governed under the authority of the Ayuntamiento. The Mayor of Valencia has the authority to appoint a neighbor resident of each of the districts to perform the tasks that the law entrusts to the them. They are the authority responsible for the fulfillment of the municipal tasks in their district and they have other powers delegated by the mayor's office of the Municipality to bring the administration closer to the community.