# 1988 Catalan regional election

The 1988 Catalan regional election was held on Sunday, 29 May 1988, to elect the 3rd Parliament of the autonomous community of Catalonia. All 135 seats in the Parliament were up for election.

## Overview
### Electoral system

The Parliament of Catalonia was the devolved, unicameral legislature of the autonomous community of Catalonia, having legislative power in regional matters as defined by the Spanish Constitution and the Catalan Statute of Autonomy, as well as the ability to vote confidence in or withdraw it from a regional president. Transitory Provision Fourth of the Statute established a specific electoral procedure for elections to the Parliament of Catalonia, of application for as long as a regional electoral law was not approved, to be supplemented by the provisions within the national electoral law. Voting for the Parliament was on the basis of universal suffrage, which comprised all nationals over 18 years of age, registered in Catalonia and in full enjoyment of their political rights.
The 135 members of the Parliament of Catalonia were elected using the D'Hondt method and a closed list proportional representation, with an electoral threshold of three percent of valid votes—which included blank ballots—being applied in each constituency. Seats were allocated to constituencies, corresponding to the provinces of Barcelona, Gerona, Lérida and Tarragona, with each being allocated a fixed number of seats:
| Seats | Constituencies |
| 85 | Barcelona |
| 18 | Tarragona |
| 17 | Gerona |
| 15 | Lérida |
In smaller constituencies, the use of the electoral method resulted in an effective threshold based on the district magnitude and the distribution of votes among candidacies.

### Election date

The term of the Parliament of Catalonia expired four years after the date of its previous election, unless it was dissolved earlier. The regional president was required to call an election fifteen days prior to the date of expiry of parliament, with election day taking place within sixty days after the call. The previous election was held on 29 April 1984, which meant that the legislature's term would have expired on 29 April 1988. The election was required to be called no later than 14 April 1988, with it taking place on the sixtieth day from the call, setting the latest possible election date for the Parliament on Monday, 13 June 1988.
After legal amendments in 1985, the president was granted the prerogative to dissolve the Parliament of Catalonia and call a snap election, provided that no motion of no confidence was in process and that dissolution did not occur before one year had elapsed since a previous one under this procedure. In the event of an investiture process failing to elect a regional president within a two-month period from the first ballot, the Parliament was to be automatically dissolved and a fresh election called.

## Parties and candidates

The electoral law allowed for parties and federations registered in the interior ministry, coalitions and groupings of electors to present lists of candidates. Parties and federations intending to form a coalition ahead of an election were required to inform the relevant Electoral Commission within ten days of the election call, whereas groupings of electors needed to secure the signature of at least one percent of the electorate in the constituencies for which they sought election, disallowing electors from signing for more than one list of candidates.
Below is a list of the main parties and electoral alliances which contested the election:
| Candidacy | Candidacy | Parties and alliances | Leading candidate | Leading candidate | Ideology | Previous result | Previous result | Gov. | Ref. |
| Candidacy | Candidacy | Parties and alliances | Leading candidate | Leading candidate | Ideology | Votes (%) | Seats | Gov. | Ref. |
| | CiU | List Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC) Democratic Union of Catalonia (UDC) | | Jordi Pujol | Catalan nationalism Centrism | 46.80% | 72 | Y | |
| | PSC–PSOE | List Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC–PSOE) | | Raimon Obiols | Social democracy | 30.11% | 41 | N | |
| | AP | List People's Alliance (AP) | | Jorge Fernández Díaz | Conservatism National conservatism | 7.70% | 11 | N | |
| | IC | List Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia (PSUC) Party of the Communists of Catalonia (PCC) Agreement of Left Nationalists (ENE) | | Rafael Ribó | Eco-socialism Green politics | 9.22% | 6 | N | |
| | ERC | List Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) | | Joan Hortalà | Catalan nationalism Left-wing nationalism Social democracy | 4.41% | 5 | N | |
| | CDS | List Democratic and Social Centre (CDS) | | Antoni Fernández Teixidó | Centrism Liberalism | New party | New party | N | |

## Opinion polls

The table below lists voting intention estimates in reverse chronological order, showing the most recent first and using the dates when the survey fieldwork was done, as opposed to the date of publication. Where the fieldwork dates are unknown, the date of publication is given instead. The highest percentage figure in each polling survey is displayed with its background shaded in the leading party's colour. If a tie ensues, this is applied to the figures with the highest percentages. The "Lead" column on the right shows the percentage-point difference between the parties with the highest percentages in a poll. When available, seat projections determined by the polling organisations are displayed below (or in place of) the percentages in a smaller font; 68 seats were required for an absolute majority in the Parliament of Catalonia.

### Color key

Exit poll
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Turnout | | | | | | | | IC | Lead |
| 1988 regional election | 29 May 1988 | — | 59.4 | 45.7 69 | 29.8 42 | – | | 4.1 6 | 5.3 6 | 3.8 3 | 7.8 9 | 15.9 |
| PSC | 29 May 1988 | ? | ? | ? 66/68 | ? 42/44 | – | | ? 5/6 | ? 5/6 | ? 2/3 | ? 9/11 | ? |
| Antena 3 | 29 May 1988 | ? | ? | ? 73 | ? 39 | – | | ? 5 | ? 6 | ? 2 | ? 10 | ? |
| Sigma Dos/COPE | 29 May 1988 | 10,000 | ? | ? 73/75 | ? 35/37 | – | | ? 6/7 | ? 7/8 | ? 2/3 | ? 9/10 | ? |
| Metra Seis/Cadena SER | 29 May 1988 | 20,000 | ? | ? 73/76 | ? 37/38 | – | | ? 7 | ? 5 | ? 0/1 | ? 9/11 | ? |
| Emopública/RTVE | 29 May 1988 | 40,000 | ? | ? 72/75 | ? 38/39 | – | | ? 5/7 | ? 4/6 | ? 0/3 | ? 10/13 | ? |
| Opina/TV3 | 29 May 1988 | 96,600 | ? | 44.0 68/70 | 30.0 40 | – | | 5.0 6/7 | 5.0 5/6 | 4.0 3 | 9.0 10/11 | 14.0 |
| Emopública/Diario 16 | 22 May 1988 | 1,000 | ? | 45.5 70/75 | 28.0 37/40 | – | | 3.5 2/3 | 7.0 8/10 | 3.5 2/3 | 9.0 8/11 | 17.5 |
| Iope–Etmar/El Periódico | 22 May 1988 | 2,800 | ? | 50.2 78 | 27.9 38 | – | | 3.4 3 | 5.3 6 | 4.2 3 | 6.3 7 | 22.3 |
| Avui | 22 May 1988 | ? | ? | ? 76/80 | ? 37/38 | – | | ? 4/5 | ? 6/7 | ? 3 | ? 6/7 | ? |
| Sofemasa/La Vanguardia | 17–19 May 1988 | 1,659 | ? | 48.0 73/76 | 29.0 39/41 | – | | 4.0 4/5 | 6.0 7/8 | 3.0 0/2 | 6.0 7/8 | 19.0 |
| Demoscopia/El País | 13–17 May 1988 | 1,600 | 65 | 49.3 73/76 | 27.7 38/40 | – | | 3.1 0/3 | 6.1 7/9 | 3.6 2/3 | 5.4 6/7 | 21.6 |
| Efe | 13 May 1988 | ? | ? | 47.7 | 31.0 | – | | 4.1 | 5.1 | 3.0 | 6.1 | 16.7 |
| Demoscopia/El País | 27–30 Apr 1988 | 1,600 | 65–67 | 47.4 72/75 | 28.2 37/40 | – | | 4.2 4/6 | 6.4 7/9 | 4.2 4/6 | 5.8 6/7 | 19.2 |
| Iope–Etmar/El Periódico | 25–28 Apr 1988 | 1,100 | ? | 50.8 78 | 27.8 38 | – | | 3.7 3 | 5.6 7 | 5.4 6 | 3.8 3 | 23.0 |
| Gabise/Diario de Barcelona | 24 Apr 1988 | 2,500 | ? | 46.5 74 | 30.2 45 | – | | 4.3 2 | 5.2 6 | 2.8 1 | 6.6 7 | 16.3 |
| Sofemasa/La Vanguardia | 6–12 Apr 1988 | 1,000 | ? | 47.0 69/72 | 29.0 40/43 | – | | 5.0 5 | 6.0 7/8 | 4.0 3/5 | 5.0 6/7 | 18.0 |
| CIS | 5–11 Apr 1988 | 2,900 | ? | 48.0 72/73 | 32.2 44 | – | | 3.6 2/3 | 5.5 7 | 3.4 3 | 6.2 6 | 15.8 |
| Gabise/Diario de Barcelona | 20 Mar 1988 | 2,500 | ? | 53.3 82 | 29.4 42 | – | | 3.8 2 | 4.7 4 | 2.0 0 | 4.8 5 | 23.9 |
| Metra Seis/El Independiente | 12 Mar 1988 | 1,800 | ? | 44.0 68 | 30.0 41 | – | | 4.5 5 | 6.5 9 | 3.0 2 | 9.0 10 | 14.0 |
| Iope–Etmar/El Periódico | 28 Feb 1988 | 1,000 | ? | 46.2 71 | 29.8 40 | – | | 5.7 8 | 5.7 6 | 5.7 5 | 4.5 5 | 16.4 |
| Gabise/Diario de Barcelona | 21 Feb 1988 | 2,425 | ? | 45.9 69 | 36.6 52 | – | | 2.2 0 | 4.4 4 | 1.0 0 | 8.1 10 | 9.3 |
| DYM/CIS | 25–30 Jan 1988 | 2,900 | ? | 46.0 69 | 32.0 45 | – | | ? 4 | 4.0 6 | ? 4 | 7.0 7 | 14.0 |
| CIS | 3–10 Dec 1987 | 2,891 | ? | 48.0 71 | 32.0 45 | – | | – | – | ? 2 | – | 16.0 |
| 1987 EP election | 10 Jun 1987 | — | 67.9 | 27.8 (47) | 36.8 (56) | – | | 3.7 (4) | 11.2 (16) | 5.6 (7) | 5.4 (5) | 9.0 |
| 1987 local elections | 10 Jun 1987 | — | 68.5 | 33.0 | 38.0 | – | | 2.5 | 5.7 | 3.1 | 10.6 | 5.0 |
| 1986 general election | 22 Jun 1986 | — | 68.9 | 32.0 (51) | 41.0 (59) | 11.4 (18) | | 2.7 (0) | | 4.1 (4) | 3.9* (3) | 9.0 |
| Sofemasa/La Vanguardia | 16 Nov–1 Dec 1985 | 980 | ? | 43.0 | 33.6 | 3.1 | 4.9 | – | | 1.3 | – | 9.4 |
| 1984 regional election | 29 Apr 1984 | — | 64.4 | 46.8 72 | 30.1 41 | 7.7 11 | 5.6 6 | 4.4 5 | | – | – | 16.7 |
| (*) Results for Union of the Catalan Left. |||||||||||||

## Results
### Overall

← Summary of the 29 May 1988 Parliament of Catalonia election results → :
| Parties and alliances | Parties and alliances | Popular vote | Popular vote | Popular vote | Seats | Seats |
| Parties and alliances | Parties and alliances | Votes | % | ±pp | Total | +/− |
| | Convergence and Union (CiU) | 1,232,514 | 45.72 | –1.08 | 69 | –3 |
| | Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC–PSOE)$^1$ | 802,828 | 29.78 | –0.36 | 42 | +1 |
| | Initiative for Catalonia (IC)$^2$ | 209,211 | 7.76 | –1.46 | 9 | +3 |
| | People's Alliance (AP)$^3$ | 143,241 | 5.31 | –2.39 | 6 | –5 |
| | Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) | 111,647 | 4.14 | –0.27 | 6 | +1 |
| | Democratic and Social Centre (CDS) | 103,351 | 3.83 | New | 3 | +3 |
| | Green Alternative–Ecologist Movement of Catalonia (AV–MEC) | 16,346 | 0.61 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| | The Ecologist Greens (EVE) | 8,730 | 0.32 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| | The Greens (EV) | 8,105 | 0.30 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| | Ecologist Party of Catalonia–VERDE (PEC–VERDE) | 5,927 | 0.22 | –0.08 | 0 | ±0 |
| | Andalusian Party of Catalonia (PAC) | 5,815 | 0.22 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| | Workers' Socialist Party (PST) | 5,794 | 0.21 | +0.02 | 0 | ±0 |
| | Social Democratic Party of Catalonia (PSDC) | 5,156 | 0.19 | –0.05 | 0 | ±0 |
| | Spanish Juntas (JJEE) | 4,524 | 0.17 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| | Communist Unification of Spain (UCE) | 3,358 | 0.12 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| | Revolutionary Workers' Party of Spain (PORE) | 2,727 | 0.10 | +0.01 | 0 | ±0 |
| | Communist Workers' League (LOC) | 2,228 | 0.08 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| | Spanish Phalanx of the CNSO (FE–JONS) | 2,202 | 0.08 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| | Humanist Party of Catalonia (PHC) | 2,195 | 0.08 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| | Alliance for the Republic (AxR)$^4$ | 1,119 | 0.04 | –0.08 | 0 | ±0 |
| | Republican Popular Unity (UPR)$^5$ | 1,066 | 0.04 | –0.02 | 0 | ±0 |
| | Centrist Unity–Democratic Spanish Party (PED) | 905 | 0.03 | New | 0 | ±0 |
| Blank ballots | Blank ballots | 16,946 | 0.63 | +0.13 | | |
| Total | Total | 2,695,935 | | | 135 | ±0 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 2,695,935 | 99.49 | +0.01 | | |
| Invalid votes | Invalid votes | 13,750 | 0.51 | –0.01 | | |
| Votes cast / turnout | Votes cast / turnout | 2,709,685 | 59.37 | –4.99 | | |
| Abstentions | Abstentions | 1,854,704 | 40.63 | +4.99 | | |
| Registered voters | Registered voters | 4,564,389 | | | | |
| Sources |||||||
| Footnotes: $^1$ Socialists' Party of Catalonia results are compared to the combined totals of Socialists' Party of Catalonia and Unity of Aran–Aranese Nationalist Party in the 1984 election.$^2$ Initiative for Catalonia results are compared to the combined totals of Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia, Party of the Communists of Catalonia and Agreement of the Catalan Left in the 1984 election.$^3$ People's Alliance results are compared to People's Coalition totals in the 1984 election.$^4$ Alliance for the Republic results are compared to Internationalist Socialist Workers' Party totals in the 1984 election.$^5$ Republican Popular Unity results are compared to Communist Party of Spain (Marxist–Leninist) totals in the 1984 election. |||||||
Popular vote
CiU
45.72%
PSC–PSOE
29.78%
IC
7.76%
AP
5.31%
ERC
4.14%
CDS
3.83%
Others
2.83%
Blank ballots
0.63% :
Seats
CiU
51.11%
PSC–PSOE
31.11%
IC
6.67%
AP
4.44%
ERC
4.44%
CDS
2.22% :

### Distribution by constituency

| Constituency | CiU | CiU | PSC | PSC | IC | IC | AP | AP | ERC | ERC | CDS | CDS |
| Constituency | % | S | % | S | % | S | % | S | % | S | % | S |
| Barcelona | 43.6 | 39 | 31.4 | 28 | 8.8 | 8 | 5.2 | 4 | 3.7 | 3 | 3.8 | 3 |
| Girona | 56.3 | 11 | 23.6 | 5 | 3.9 | − | 3.7 | − | 5.5 | 1 | 3.2 | − |
| Lleida | 53.8 | 9 | 23.1 | 4 | 3.6 | − | 6.2 | 1 | 5.9 | 1 | 4.3 | − |
| Tarragona | 47.6 | 10 | 27.0 | 5 | 5.5 | 1 | 7.1 | 1 | 5.3 | 1 | 4.0 | − |
| Total | 45.7 | 69 | 29.8 | 42 | 7.8 | 9 | 5.3 | 6 | 4.1 | 6 | 3.8 | 3 |
| Sources |||||||||||||

## Aftermath

Investiture Jordi Pujol (CDC) :
| Ballot → | Ballot → | 22 June 1988 |
| Required majority → | Required majority → | 68 out of 135 Y |
| | Yes • CiU (69) | 69 / 135 |
| | No • PSC (41) • IC (9) • ERC (6) | 56 / 135 |
| | Abstentions • AP (6) • CDS (3) | 9 / 135 |
| | Absentees • PSC (1) | 1 / 135 |
| Sources |||