La Gomera (Senate constituency)

For the Parliament of the Canary Islands constituency, see La Gomera (Parliament of the Canary Islands constituency).

La Gomera
Senate of Spain Electoral constituency
Location of La Gomera within Spain
Island	La Gomera El Hierro (1977–1979)
Autonomous community	Canary Islands
Population	22,436 (2024)
Electorate	26,540 (2023)
Major settlements	San Sebastián de La Gomera
Current constituency
Created	1977
Seats	1
Member	ASG (1)

La Gomera is one of the 59 constituencies represented in the Senate, the upper chamber of the Spanish parliament, the Cortes Generales. The constituency (whose boundaries correspond to those of the homonymous island; from 1977 to 1979 it also included the island of El Hierro) elects one senator. The electoral system uses open list partial block voting, with electors voting for individual candidates instead of parties.

Electoral system

The constituency was created as per the Political Reform Law and was first contested in the 1977 general election. The Law provided for the provinces of Spain to be established as multi-member districts in the Senate, with this regulation being maintained under the Spanish Constitution of 1978. Additionally, the Constitution requires for any modification of the provincial limits to be approved under an organic law, needing an absolute majority in the Cortes Generales.

Voting is based on universal suffrage, comprising all Spanish nationals over 18 years of age with full political rights, provided that they have not been deprived of the right to vote by a final sentence. The only exception was in 1977, when this was limited to nationals over 21 years of age and in full enjoyment of their political and civil rights. Amendments in 2011 required non-resident citizens to apply for voting, a system known as "begged" voting (Spanish: Voto rogado). which was abolished in 2022. Further, amendments in 2018 granted the right to vote to those legally incapacitated. 209 Senate seats (207 in 1977, 208 from 1978 to 2026) are elected using open-list partial block voting: voters in constituencies electing four seats can choose up to three candidates; in those with two or three seats, up to two; and in single-member districts, one. Each of the 47 peninsular provinces is allocated four seats, while in insular provinces—such as the Balearic and Canary Islands—the districts are the islands themselves, with the larger ones (Mallorca, Gran Canaria and Tenerife) being allocated three seats each, and the smaller ones (Menorca, Ibiza, Formentera, Fuerteventura, La Gomera, El Hierro, Lanzarote and La Palma) one each. Ceuta and Melilla elect two seats each. Until 1985, the law also provided for by-elections to fill Senate seats vacated up to two years into the legislature; subsequently, any vacancies arising after the proclamation of candidates and during the legislative term are filled by the next candidates on the party lists or, when required, by designated substitutes.

The electoral law allows for parties and federations registered in the interior ministry, alliances and groupings of electors to present lists of candidates. Parties and federations intending to form an alliance are required to inform the relevant electoral commission within 10 days of the election call—15 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 permille of the electorate, with a compulsory minimum of 500 signatures, until 1985—disallowing electors from signing for more than one list. Also since 2011, parties, federations or alliances 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. Amendments in 2007 required a balanced composition of men and women in the electoral lists, so that candidates of either sex made up at least 40 percent of the total composition; further amendments in 2024 required the use of a zipper system.

Senators

Senators for La Gomera 1977–
Key to parties   PSOE   ASG   UCD
Legislature	Election	Distribution
Constituent	1977	1
1st	1979	1
2nd	1982	1
3rd	1986	1
4th	1989	1
5th	1993	1
6th	1996	1
7th	2000	1
8th	2004	1
9th	2008	1
10th	2011	1
11th	2015	1
12th	2016	1
13th	2019 (Apr)	1
14th	2019 (Nov)	1
15th	2023	1

General elections

2023

Summary of the 23 July 2023 Senate of Spain election results

Candidates	Parties and coalitions		Popular vote
			Votes	%
Y Fabián Chinea Correa		ASG	3,820	37.96
• José María Morales Herrera		PSOE	3,045	30.26
• Domingo Curbelo Sanz García		PP	1,657	16.46
• Moisés Plasencia Martín		CC	645	6.41
• Jorge Iván Negrín Méndez		Vox	552	5.48
• Mónica Carmen Padilla Herrera		PCPC	138	1.37
• María Jesús Gallo García		Recortes Cero	52	0.51
Blank ballots			153	1.52
Total			10062
Valid votes			10,062	96.78
Invalid votes			334	3.21
Votes cast / turnout			10,396	63.80
Abstentions			5,897	36.19
Registered voters			16293
Sources

November 2019

Summary of the 10 November 2019 Senate of Spain election results in La Gomera

Candidates	Parties and coalitions		Popular vote
			Votes	%
Y Fabián Chinea Correa		ASG	3,628	40.14
• Fernando Manuel Méndez Borges		PSOE	2,112	23.37
• Carmen Delia García Medina		PP	1,197	13.24
• Lázaro Rafael Arteaga Hernández		CCa–PNC–NC	757	8.38
• Jesús Eder Arteaga Jerez		Podemos–IU	689	7.62
• Laura Serafina Vega Casanova		Cs	270	2.99
• Sylvana Ferreira Pérez		PACMA	111	1.23
• Ivan Medina Verheyen		ANC–UP	46	0.51
• Nicole Pérez González		EB	31	0.34
• Salvador Morales Coello		Recortes Cero–GV	23	0.25
Blank ballots			174	1.93
Total			9,038
Valid votes			9,038	96.01
Invalid votes			376	3.99
Votes cast / turnout			9,414	36.59
Abstentions			16,311	63.41
Registered voters			25,725
Sources

Bibliography

• Ley 1/1977, de 4 de enero, para la Reforma Política (Fundamental Law 1/1977). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 4 January 1977. BOE-A-1977-165. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
• Real Decreto-ley 20/1977, de 18 de marzo, sobre Normas Electorales (Royal Decree-Law 20/1977). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 18 March 1977. BOE-A-1977-7445. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
• Constitución Española (Constitution). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 27 December 1978. BOE-A-1978-31229. Retrieved 1 June 2026.
• Ley Orgánica 5/1985, de 19 de junio, del Régimen Electoral General (Organic Law 5/1985). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 19 June 1985. BOE-A-1985-11672. Retrieved 6 August 2026.
• Carreras de Odriozola, Albert; Tafunell Sambola, Xavier (2005) [1989]. Estadísticas históricas de España, siglos XIX-XX (PDF) (in Spanish). Vol. 1 (II ed.). Bilbao: Fundación BBVA. pp. 1072–1097. ISBN 84-96515-00-1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2015.