Ceuta is one of the 52 constituencies (Spanish: circunscripciones) represented in the Congress of Deputies, the lower chamber of the Spanish parliament, the Cortes Generales. The constituency currently elects one deputy using plurality voting. Its boundaries correspond to those of the autonomous city of Ceuta.
Voting is on the basis of universal suffrage, which comprises all nationals over eighteen and in full enjoyment of their political rights. The only exception was in 1977, when this was limited to nationals over twenty-one and in full enjoyment of their political and civil rights. Amendments to the electoral law in 2011 required for Spaniards abroad to apply for voting before being permitted to vote, a system known as "begged" or expat vote (Spanish: Voto rogado).[4] 348 seats are elected using the D'Hondt method and a closed listproportional representation, with an electoral threshold of three percent of valid votes—which includes blank ballots—being applied in each constituency. Each provincial constituency is entitled to an initial minimum of two seats, with the remaining 248 being distributed in proportion to their populations. Ceuta and Melilla are allocated the two remaining seats, which are elected using plurality voting.[3][5][6] The use of the D'Hondt method may result in a higher effective threshold, depending on the district magnitude.[7]
The electoral law allows 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 are required to inform the relevant Electoral Commission within ten days of the election call—fifteen before 1985—whereas groupings of electors need to secure the signature of at least one percent of the electorate in the constituencies for which they seek election—one-thousandth of the electorate, with a compulsory minimum of 500 signatures, until 1985—disallowing electors from signing for more than one list of candidates. Also since 2011, parties, federations or coalitions that have not obtained a mandate in either chamber of the Cortes at the preceding election are required to secure the signature of at least 0.1 percent of electors in the aforementioned constituencies.[5][6]
^"Real Decreto 1037/2022, de 20 de diciembre, por el que se declaran oficiales las cifras de población resultantes de la revisión del Padrón municipal referidas al 1 de enero de 2022" (PDF). Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish) (305): 178928–178933. 21 December 2022. ISSN 0212-033X.
^Ley 1/1977, de 4 de enero, para la Reforma Política (Law 1) (in Spanish). 4 January 1977. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
^ a bConstitución Española (in Spanish). 29 December 1978. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
^Reig Pellicer, Naiara (16 December 2015). "Spanish elections: Begging for the right to vote". cafebabel.co.uk. Retrieved 17 July 2017.
^ a bReal Decreto-ley 20/1977, de 18 de marzo, sobre Normas Electorales (Royal Decree-Law 20) (in Spanish). 18 March 1977. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
^ a bLey Orgánica 5/1985, de 19 de junio, del Régimen Electoral General (Organic Law 5) (in Spanish). 19 June 1985. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
^Gallagher, Michael (30 July 2012). "Effective threshold in electoral systems". Trinity College, Dublin. Archived from the original on 30 July 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
^"Resolución de 30 de agosto de 2023, de la Presidencia de la Junta Electoral Central, por la que se publica el resumen de los resultados de las elecciones al Congreso de los Diputados y al Senado convocadas por Real Decreto 400/2023, de 29 de mayo, y celebradas el 23 de julio de 2023, conforme a las actas de escrutinio general y de proclamación de electos remitidas por las correspondientes Juntas Electorales Provinciales y por las Juntas Electorales de Ceuta y de Melilla" (PDF). Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish) (209): 122201–122274. 1 September 2023. ISSN 0212-033X.
^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o"Elecciones celebradas. Resultados electorales". Ministry of the Interior (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 April 2022.