1987 Seville municipal election
10 June 1987
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All 31 seats in the City Council of Seville 16 seats needed for a majority | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Opinion polls | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Registered | 478,952 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 293,559 (61.3%) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A municipal election was held in Seville on 10 June 1987 to elect the 3rd City Council of the municipality. All 31 seats in the City Council were up for election. It was held concurrently with regional elections in thirteen autonomous communities and local elections all across Spain, as well as the 1987 European Parliament election.
Overview
Under the 1978 Constitution, the governance of municipalities in Spain—part of the country's local government system—was centered on the figure of city councils (Spanish: ayuntamientos), local corporations with independent legal personality composed of a mayor, a government council and an elected legislative assembly.[2] The mayor was indirectly elected by the local assembly, requiring an absolute majority; otherwise, the candidate from the most-voted party automatically became mayor (ties were resolved by drawing lots).[3] In the case of Seville, the top-tier administrative and governing body was the City Council of Seville.
Date
The term of local assemblies in Spain expired four years after the date of their previous election. The election decree was required to be issued no later than 25 days prior to the scheduled expiration date of the assemblies and published on the following day in the Official State Gazette (BOE), with election day taking place between 54 and 60 days after the decree's publication.[4] The previous local elections were held on 8 May 1983, which meant that the chambers' terms would have expired on 8 May 1987. The election decree was required to be published in the BOE no later than 14 April 1987, setting the latest possible date for election day on 13 June 1987.
Local assemblies could not be dissolved before the expiration of their term, except in cases of mismanagement that seriously harmed the public interest and implied a breach of constitutional obligations, in which case the Council of Ministers could—optionally—decide to call a by-election.[5]
Elections to the assemblies of local entities were officially called on 14 April 1987 with the publication of the corresponding decree in the BOE, setting election day for 10 June.[6]
Electoral system
Voting for local assemblies was based on universal suffrage, comprising all Spanish nationals over 18 years of age, registered and residing in the municipality and with full political rights (provided that they had not been deprived of the right to vote by a final sentence, nor were legally incapacitated), as well as resident non-nationals whose country of origin allowed reciprocal voting by virtue of a treaty.[7]
Local councillors were elected using the D'Hondt method and closed-list proportional voting, with a five percent-threshold of valid votes (including blank ballots) in each municipality.[8] Each municipality was a multi-member constituency, with a number of seats based on the following scale:[9]
| Population | Councillors |
|---|---|
| <250 | 5 |
| 251–1,000 | 7 |
| 1,001–2,000 | 9 |
| 2,001–5,000 | 11 |
| 5,001–10,000 | 13 |
| 10,001–20,000 | 17 |
| 20,001–50,000 | 21 |
| 50,001–100,000 | 25 |
| >100,001 | +1 per each 100,000 inhabitants or fraction +1 if total is an even number |
The law did not provide for by-elections to fill vacant seats; instead, any vacancies arising after the proclamation of candidates and during the legislative term were filled by the next candidates on the party lists or, when required, by designated substitutes.[10]
Parties and candidates
The electoral law allowed 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 were required to inform the relevant electoral commission within 10 days of the election call, whereas groupings of electors needed to secure the signature of a determined amount of the electors registered in the municipality for which they sought election, disallowing electors from signing for more than one list. In the case of Seville, as its population was between 300,001 and 1,000,000, at least 5,000 signatures were required.[11]
Below is a list of the main parties and alliances which contested the election:
| Candidacy | Parties and alliances |
Leading candidate | Ideology | Previous result | Gov. | Ref. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vote % | Seats | ||||||||
| PSOE–A | List |
![]() |
Manuel del Valle | Social democracy | 56.2% | 19 | [12] [13] | ||
| AP | List
|
![]() |
Soledad Becerril | Conservatism National conservatism |
29.6% [a] |
10 | [1] | ||
| PDP | List |
![]() |
Javier Arenas | Christian democracy | [1] [14] [15] | ||||
| IU–CA | List
|
![]() |
Adolfo Cuéllar | Socialism Communism |
8.9% [b] |
2 | |||
| PA | List
|
![]() |
Alejandro Rojas-Marcos | Andalusian nationalism Social democracy |
3.0% | 0 | |||
| CDS | List |
![]() |
Rosario Muela | Centrism Liberalism |
1.2% | 0 | [16] | ||
Opinion polls
The tables below list opinion polling results 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.
Voting intention estimates
The table below lists weighted voting intention estimates. Refusals are generally excluded from the party vote percentages, while question wording and the treatment of "don't know" responses and those not intending to vote may vary between polling organisations. When available, seat projections determined by the polling organisations are displayed below (or in place of) the percentages in a smaller font; 16 seats were required for an absolute majority in the City Council of Seville.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Turnout | Lead | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 municipal election | 10 Jun 1987 | N/a | 61.3 | 38.7 13 |
– | 9.2 3 |
20.9 7 |
2.4 0 |
24.6 8 |
0.9 0 |
14.1 |
| DYM/Cambio 16 | 4 Jun 1987 | ? | ? | ? 15 |
– | ? 3 |
? 4 |
– | ? 9 |
– | ? |
| Demoscopia/El País[p 1] | 22–26 May 1987 | ? | 70 | 41.4 14/15 |
– | 10.6 3 |
20.0 5/6 |
5.1 1 |
21.9 7 |
1.0 0 |
19.5 |
| Edis/PSOE[p 2] | 11 May 1987 | ? | ? | ? 16 |
– | ? 3 |
? 2/3 |
? 0/1 |
? 8/9 |
– | ? |
| CIM/PDP[c][p 3] | 19 Mar 1987 | ? | ? | 43.8 13/14 |
– | 10.0 3/4 |
14.9 4/5 |
– | 16.9 5/6 |
14.4 4 |
26.9 |
| PSOE[p 4][p 5] | 3 Mar 1987 | 1,200 | ? | ? 12 |
– | ? 5 |
? 6 |
– | ? 8 |
– | ? |
| Metra Seis/PA[p 6] | 11 Jan 1987 | ? | ? | 32.7 | – | 15.4 | 25.8 | 3.2 | 14.0 | – | 6.9 |
| 1986 regional election | 22 Jun 1986 | N/a | 69.8 | 40.8 (14) |
25.5 (8) |
16.8 (5) |
11.8 (4) |
1.6 (0) |
[d] | [d] | 15.3 |
| 1986 general election | 22 Jun 1986 | N/a | 71.8 | 51.3 (19) |
27.4 (10) |
6.7 (2) |
4.8 (0) |
4.4 (0) |
[d] | [d] | 23.9 |
| 1983 municipal election | 8 May 1983 | N/a | 69.9 | 56.2 19 |
29.6 10 |
8.8[b] 3 |
3.0 0 |
1.2 0 |
[d] | [d] | 26.6 |
Results
![]() | ||||||
| Parties and alliances | Popular vote | Seats | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | ±pp | Total | +/− | ||
| Spanish Socialist Workers' Party of Andalusia (PSOE–A) | 112,388 | 38.75 | −17.47 | 13 | −6 | |
| People's Alliance (AP)1 | 71,287 | 24.58 | n/a | 8 | +2 | |
| Andalusian Party (PA) | 60,479 | 20.85 | +17.88 | 7 | +7 | |
| United Left–Assembly for Andalusia (IU–CA)2 | 26,562 | 9.16 | +0.30 | 3 | +1 | |
| Democratic and Social Centre (CDS) | 6,968 | 2.40 | +1.23 | 0 | ±0 | |
| Workers' Party of Spain–Communist Unity (PTE–UC) | 3,954 | 1.36 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| People's Democratic Party (PDP)1 | 2,602 | 0.90 | n/a | 0 | −4 | |
| The Greens (LV) | 1,750 | 0.60 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Independent Solution (SI) | 561 | 0.19 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Spanish Phalanx of the CNSO (FE–JONS) | 515 | 0.18 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Andalusian Liberation (LA) | 248 | 0.09 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Republican Popular Unity (UPR) | 176 | 0.06 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Humanist Platform (PH) | 161 | 0.06 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Blank ballots | 2,416 | 0.83 | +0.38 | |||
| Total | 290,067 | 31 | ±0 | |||
| Valid votes | 290,067 | 98.81 | −0.48 | |||
| Invalid votes | 3,492 | 1.19 | +0.48 | |||
| Votes cast / turnout | 293,559 | 61.29 | +1.03 | |||
| Abstentions | 185,393 | 38.71 | −1.03 | |||
| Registered voters | 478,952 | |||||
| Sources[17][18][19] | ||||||
Footnotes:
| ||||||
Aftermath
Government formation
| Investiture | |||
| Ballot → | 30 June 1987 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Required majority → | 16 out of 31 | ||
|
13 / 31 |
||
|
8 / 31 |
||
|
7 / 31 |
||
3 / 31 |
|||
| Abstentions/Blank ballots | 0 / 31 | ||
| Absentees | 0 / 31 | ||
| Sources[20] | |||
Notes
References
Opinion poll sources
- ↑ "Del Valle necesitará apoyos externos para mantenerse en la alcaldía de Sevilla" (PDF). El País (in Spanish). 4 June 1987.
- ↑ "El PSOE filtra una encuesta claramente favorable a Manuel del Valle". ABC (in Spanish). 11 May 1987.
- ↑ "El PDP concurrirá en solitario a las próximas elecciones municipales". ABC (in Spanish). 19 March 1987.
- ↑ "Peligra la mayoría absoluta socialista en Sevilla". La Vanguardia (in Spanish). 3 March 1987.
- ↑ "Con Del Valle el PSOE puede perder la Alcaldía de Sevilla". ABC (in Spanish). 3 March 1987.
- ↑ "Rojas Marcos asegura que obtendría el doble de votos que Valle por la Alcaldía". ABC (in Spanish). 11 January 1987.
Other
- 1 2 3 "Soledad Becerril será la candidata de AP para la alcaldía de Sevilla". El País (in Spanish). Seville. 24 March 1987. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
- ↑ Constitution (1978), art. 140; LBRL (1985), art. 19.
- ↑ LBRL (1985), art. 19; LOREG (1985), art. 196.
- ↑ LOREG (1985), arts. 42 & 194.
- ↑ LBRL (1985), art. 61.
- ↑ Royal Decree 508/1987 (1987), arts. 1–2.
- ↑ Constitution (1978), art. 13; LBRL (1985), art. 19; LOREG (1985), arts. 2–3 & 176.
- ↑ LOREG (1985), arts. 163 & 180.
- ↑ LOREG (1985), art. 179.
- ↑ LOREG (1985), arts. 46, 48 & 182.
- ↑ LOREG (1985), arts. 44 & 187.
- ↑ García, Sebastián (22 March 1987). "Del Valle, floja esperanza del PSOE en Sevilla". El País (in Spanish). Seville. Retrieved 30 November 2025.
- ↑ González Ibáñez, Juan (8 April 1987). "Barranco y Del Valle, confirmados como candidatos a alcaldes de Madrid y Sevilla". El País (in Spanish). Madrid. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ↑ "El PDP irá en solitario". El País (in Spanish). 14 September 1986. Retrieved 10 March 2026.
- ↑ "Alzaga descarta cualquier coalición del PDP con Alianza Popular". El País (in Spanish). Valencia. 28 January 1987. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ↑ González Ibáñez, Juan (1 May 1987). "Suárez renuncia a ser candidato al Parlamento y pone en su lugar al ex ministro Punset". El País (in Spanish). Madrid. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ↑ Lozano, Carles. "Elecciones municipales en Sevilla (desde 1979)". Historia Electoral.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 November 2025.
- ↑ "Elecciones celebradas. Resultados electorales" (in Spanish). Ministry of the Interior. Archived from the original on 18 December 2025. Retrieved 5 November 2025.
- ↑ "Resultados de las elecciones municipales celebradas el 10 de junio de 1987" (PDF). Official State Gazette (in Spanish) (172): 1–565. 20 July 1987. ISSN 0212-033X. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
- ↑ "Los alcaldes de Sevilla y Córdoba ofrecen a los grupos de oposición la posibilidad de integrarse en sus gobiernos". El País (in Spanish). Seville. 1 July 1987. Retrieved 30 November 2025.
Bibliography
- Constitución Española (Constitution). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 27 December 1978 [version as of 29 December 1978]. BOE-A-1978-31229. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
- Ley 7/1985, de 2 de abril, Reguladora de las Bases del Régimen Local (Law 7/1985). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 2 April 1985 [version as of 3 April 1985]. BOE-A-1985-5392. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
- Ley Orgánica 5/1985, de 19 de junio, del Régimen Electoral General (Organic Law 5/1985). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 19 June 1985 [version as of 3 April 1987]. BOE-A-1985-11672. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
- Real Decreto 508/1987, de 13 de abril, de convocatoria de elecciones locales (Royal Decree 508/1987). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 13 April 1987. BOE-A-1987-9222. Retrieved 27 November 2025.

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