1986 Basque regional election
30 November 1986
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
All 75 seats in the Basque Parliament 38 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opinion polls | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Registered | 1,660,143 4.8% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 1,155,815 (69.6%) 1.1 pp | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A regional election was held in the Basque Country on 30 November 1986 to elect the 3rd Parliament of the autonomous community. All 75 seats in the Parliament were up for election.
The Socialist Party of the Basque Country (PSE–PSOE) won 19 seats, the Basque Nationalist Party (EAJ/PNV) came second with 17 seats, People's Unity (HB) and Basque Solidarity (EA), a PNV split, each won 13 seats, and Basque Country Left won 9 seats.
Overview
Under the 1979 Statute of Autonomy, the Basque Parliament was the unicameral legislature of the Basque Autonomous Community, having legislative power in devolved matters, as well as the ability to grant or withdraw confidence from a lehendakari.[1] The electoral and procedural rules were supplemented by national law provisions.[2]
Date
The term of the Basque Parliament expired four years after the date of its previous election, unless it was dissolved earlier. The election decree was required to be issued no later than 25 days before the scheduled expiration date of parliament and published on the following day in the Official Gazette of the Basque Country (BOPV), with election day taking place between 54 and 60 days after the decree's publication.[3] The previous election was held on 26 February 1984, which meant that the chamber's term would have expired on 26 February 1988. The election decree was required to be published in the BOPV no later than 2 February 1988, setting the latest possible date for election day on 2 April 1988.
The lehendakari had the prerogative to dissolve the Basque Parliament at any given time and call a snap election, provided that no motion of no confidence was in process.[4] In the event of an investiture process failing to elect a lehendakari within a 60-day period from the Parliament's reconvening, the chamber was to be automatically dissolved and a fresh election called.[5]
The Basque Parliament was officially dissolved on 1 October 1986 with the publication of the corresponding decree in the BOPV, setting election day for 30 November.[6]
Electoral system
Voting for the Parliament was based on universal suffrage, comprising all Spanish nationals over 18 years of age, registered in the Basque Country and with full civil and political rights, provided that they had not been deprived of the right to vote by a final sentence, nor were legally incapacitated.[7]
The Basque Parliament had 75 seats. All were elected in three multi-member constituencies—corresponding to the provinces of Álava, Biscay and Guipúzcoa, each of which was assigned a fixed number of 25 seats to provide for an equal parliamentary representation of the three provinces—using the D'Hondt method and closed-list proportional voting, with a five percent-threshold of valid votes (not including blank ballots)[b] in each constituency.[8]
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.[9]
Opinion polls
The tables below lists 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; 38 seats were required for an absolute majority in the Basque Parliament.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Turnout | PNV | Lead | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 regional election | 30 Nov 1986 | N/a | 69.6 | 23.6 17 |
22.0 19 |
17.4 13 |
4.8 2 |
10.8 9 |
3.5 2 |
15.8 13 |
1.6 |
| Emopública/Diario 16[p 1] | 23 Nov 1986 | ? | ? | ? 18/19 |
? 18/19 |
? 12/13 |
? 5 |
? 8 |
? 0 |
? 9/10 |
Tie |
| Demoscopia/El País[p 2][p 3][p 4] | 14–18 Nov 1986 | 1,500 | 65–68 | 25.0 20/21 |
24.0 19/20 |
? 9/10 |
? 2/3 |
? 7/8 |
? 1/3 |
? 13/14 |
1.0 |
| CINDE/Basque Government[p 5] | 14–18 Nov 1986 | 1,500 | ? | ? 20 |
? 18 |
? 12 |
? 3 |
? 10 |
? 2 |
? 10 |
? |
| Bergareche/El Correo[p 1] | 15–17 Nov 1986 | 2,972 | ? | ? 16/18 |
? 18/20 |
? 13/15 |
? 5/7 |
? 8/9 |
? 2 |
? 9/10 |
? |
| CINDE/Basque Government[p 1][p 6] | 9–12 Nov 1986 | 1,200 | ? | 24.0 20 |
19.0 17 |
14.0 11 |
7.0 4 |
11.0 8 |
5.0 2 |
15.0 13 |
5.0 |
| Demoscopia/El País[p 7][p 8][p 9] | 7–11 Nov 1986 | 1,200 | 65–69 | 28.0 19/22 |
25.0 17/18 |
16.0 10/13 |
? 1/3 |
11.0 8/9 |
? 1/4 |
13.0 11/13 |
3.0 |
| PSOE[p 10] | 18 Oct 1986 | ? | ? | ? 14 |
? 18 |
? 13 |
? 6 |
? 8 |
? 2 |
? 14 |
? |
| Bergareche/El Correo[p 10][p 11] | 18 Oct 1986 | 2,545 | ? | ? 16 |
? 18/19 |
? 13/15 |
? 5 |
? 10/11 |
? 3 |
? 7/9 |
? |
| Iope–Etmar/Tiempo[p 10][p 12] | 7 Oct 1986 | ? | ? | 16.2 13 |
18.9 15 |
17.4 13 |
3.6 2 |
11.0 8 |
3.3 1 |
27.5 23 |
8.6 |
| Ikerfel/PNV[p 10][p 13] | 11–19 Sep 1986 | ? | ? | ? 20 |
? 17/18 |
? 11 |
? 7/8 |
? 8 |
? 1 |
? 10 |
? |
| Gaceta del Norte[p 10][p 14][p 15] | 12–17 Sep 1986 | ? | ? | ? 17 |
? 17 |
? 10 |
? 6 |
? 9 |
– | ?[c] 16 |
Tie |
| ? | ? 20 |
? 19 |
? 10 |
? 6 |
? 9 |
– | ? 11 |
? | |||
| 1986 general election | 22 Jun 1986 | N/a | 67.6 | 27.8 21 |
26.3 23 |
17.7 13 |
10.5[d] 9 |
9.1 7 |
5.0 2 |
– | 1.5 |
| 1984 regional election | 26 Feb 1984 | N/a | 68.5 | 41.8 32 |
23.0 19 |
14.6 11 |
9.3[d] 7 |
7.9 6 |
– | – | 18.8 |
Voting preferences
The table below lists raw, unweighted voting preferences.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | PNV | Lead | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 regional election[e] | 30 Nov 1986 | N/a | 16.3 | 15.2 | 12.0 | 3.3 | 7.5 | 2.9 | 10.9 | N/a | 30.4 | 1.1 |
| CIS[p 16] | 20 Nov 1986 | 1,191 | 19.0 | 13.0 | 12.0 | 1.0 | 10.0 | 2.0 | 10.0 | 28.0 | 5.0 | 6.0 |
| CIS[p 17] | 10 Nov 1986 | 2,077 | 17.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 1.0 | 7.0 | 1.0 | 7.0 | 42.0 | 7.0 | 8.0 |
| CIS[p 18] | 1 Nov 1986 | 2,074 | 17.0 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 40.0 | 7.0 | 8.0 |
| CIS[p 19] | 20 Oct 1986 | 2,055 | 15.0 | 10.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 8.0 | – | 7.0 | 44.0 | 6.0 | 5.0 |
| CIS[p 20] | 10 Oct 1986 | 1,996 | 17.0 | 9.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 7.0 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 41.0 | 7.0 | 8.0 |
| CIS[p 21] | 1 Oct 1986 | 1,755 | 16.0 | 9.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 9.0 | – | 8.0 | 41.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 |
| 1986 general election[e] | 22 Jun 1986 | N/a | 18.5 | 17.5 | 11.8 | 7.0[d] | 6.0 | 3.3 | – | N/a | 32.4 | 1.0 |
| 1984 regional election | 26 Feb 1984 | N/a | 28.5 | 15.6 | 9.9 | 6.3[d] | 5.4 | 0.9 | – | N/a | 31.5 | 12.9 |
Victory preferences
The table below lists opinion polling on the victory preferences for each party in the event of a general election taking place.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | PNV | Other/ None |
Lead | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIS[p 16] | 20 Nov 1986 | 1,191 | 19.0 | 13.0 | 12.0 | – | 9.0 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 37.0 | 6.0 |
| CIS[p 17] | 10 Nov 1986 | 2,077 | 22.0 | 11.0 | 9.0 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 9.0 | – | 39.0 | 11.0 |
| CIS[p 18] | 1 Nov 1986 | 2,074 | 21.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 1.0 | 10.0 | 1.0 | 10.0 | 1.0 | 36.0 | 11.0 |
| CIS[p 19] | 20 Oct 1986 | 2,055 | 20.0 | 13.0 | 9.0 | 1.0 | 9.0 | – | 9.0 | 1.0 | 38.0 | 7.0 |
| CIS[p 20] | 10 Oct 1986 | 1,996 | 22.0 | 10.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 10.0 | – | 38.0 | 12.0 |
| CIS[p 21] | 1 Oct 1986 | 1,755 | 22.0 | 10.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 10.0 | 1.0 | 10.0 | 2.0 | 36.0 | 12.0 |
Victory likelihood
The table below lists opinion polling on the perceived likelihood of victory for each party in the event of a regional election taking place.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | PNV | Other/ None |
Lead | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIS[p 16] | 20 Nov 1986 | 1,191 | 38.0 | 16.0 | 1.0 | – | 2.0 | – | 43.0 | 22.0 |
| CIS[p 17] | 10 Nov 1986 | 2,077 | 36.0 | 15.0 | 1.0 | – | 3.0 | – | 45.0 | 21.0 |
| CIS[p 18] | 1 Nov 1986 | 2,074 | 32.0 | 15.0 | 2.0 | – | 4.0 | – | 47.0 | 17.0 |
| CIS[p 19] | 20 Oct 1986 | 2,055 | 32.0 | 17.0 | 2.0 | – | 5.0 | – | 44.0 | 15.0 |
| CIS[p 20] | 10 Oct 1986 | 1,996 | 35.0 | 15.0 | 1.0 | – | 4.0 | 1.0 | 44.0 | 20.0 |
| CIS[p 21] | 1 Oct 1986 | 1,755 | 31.0 | 19.0 | – | 1.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 42.0 | 12.0 |
Preferred Lehendakari
The table below lists opinion polling on leader preferences to become Lehendakari.
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Other/ None/ Not care |
Lead | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ardanza PNV |
Benegas PSE–PSOE |
Bandrés EE |
Guimón AP |
Viana CDS |
Garaiko. EA | ||||||
| CIS[p 16] | 20 Nov 1986 | 1,191 | 23.0 | 14.0 | 14.0 | – | 1.0 | 17.0 | 1.0 | 30.0 | 6.0 |
| CIS[p 17] | 10 Nov 1986 | 2,077 | 22.0 | 12.0 | 12.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 17.0 | – | 35.0 | 5.0 |
| CIS[p 18] | 1 Nov 1986 | 2,074 | 22.0 | 10.0 | 12.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 20.0 | – | 34.0 | 2.0 |
| CIS[p 19] | 20 Oct 1986 | 2,055 | 19.0 | 12.0 | 14.0 | 1.0 | – | 20.0 | – | 34.0 | 1.0 |
| CIS[p 20] | 10 Oct 1986 | 1,996 | 25.0 | – | – | – | – | 38.0 | – | 27.0 | 13.0 |
| 19.0 | 9.0 | 13.0 | 1.0 | – | 22.0 | – | 36.0 | 3.0 | |||
| CIS[p 21] | 1 Oct 1986 | 1,755 | 19.0 | 9.0 | 15.0 | – | – | 25.0 | – | 32.0 | 6.0 |
Results
Overall
| Parties and alliances | Popular vote | Seats | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | ±pp | Total | +/− | ||
| Basque Nationalist Party (EAJ/PNV) | 271,208 | 23.60 | −18.21 | 17 | −15 | |
| Socialist Party of the Basque Country (PSE–PSOE) | 252,233 | 21.95 | −1.01 | 19 | ±0 | |
| Popular Unity (HB) | 199,900 | 17.40 | +2.81 | 13 | +2 | |
| Basque Solidarity (EA) | 181,175 | 15.77 | New | 13 | +13 | |
| Basque Country Left (EE) | 124,423 | 10.83 | +2.89 | 9 | +3 | |
| People's Alliance–Liberal Party (AP–PL)1 | 55,606 | 4.84 | −4.48 | 2 | −5 | |
| Democratic and Social Centre (CDS) | 40,445 | 3.52 | New | 2 | +2 | |
| United Left (IU/EB) | 6,750 | 0.59 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Communist Party of the Basque Country (PCE/EPK) | 5,675 | 0.49 | −0.90 | 0 | ±0 | |
| Workers' Socialist Party (PST) | 2,925 | 0.25 | +0.05 | 0 | ±0 | |
| Humanist Party (PH) | 1,400 | 0.12 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Internationalist Socialist Workers' Party (POSI) | 1,190 | 0.10 | New | 0 | ±0 | |
| Republican Popular Unity (UPR)2 | 1,102 | 0.10 | ±0.00 | 0 | ±0 | |
| Blank ballots[f] | 5,003 | 0.44 | −0.03 | |||
| Total | 1,149,035 | 75 | ±0 | |||
| Valid votes | 1,149,035 | 99.41 | −0.01 | |||
| Invalid votes | 6,780 | 0.59 | +0.01 | |||
| Votes cast / turnout | 1,155,815 | 69.62 | +1.13 | |||
| Abstentions | 504,328 | 30.38 | −1.13 | |||
| Registered voters | 1,660,143 | |||||
| Sources[10][11] | ||||||
Footnotes:
| ||||||
Distribution by constituency
| Constituency | PNV | PSE | HB | EA | EE | AP–PL | CDS | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | S | % | S | % | S | % | S | % | S | % | S | % | S | |
| Álava | 20.1 | 5 | 24.9 | 7 | 12.8 | 3 | 14.5 | 4 | 10.9 | 3 | 6.9 | 1 | 8.0 | 2 |
| Biscay | 28.8 | 8 | 22.5 | 6 | 16.0 | 4 | 11.7 | 3 | 10.2 | 3 | 5.1 | 1 | 3.2 | – |
| Guipúzcoa | 16.0 | 4 | 19.9 | 6 | 21.6 | 6 | 23.1 | 6 | 11.9 | 3 | 3.6 | – | 2.4 | – |
| Total | 23.6 | 17 | 22.0 | 19 | 17.4 | 13 | 15.8 | 13 | 10.8 | 9 | 4.8 | 2 | 3.5 | 2 |
| Sources[10][11] | ||||||||||||||
Aftermath
Government formation
| Investiture | |||
| Ballot → | 26 February 1987 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Required majority → | 38 out of 75 | ||
38 / 75
|
|||
| Juan Carlos Yoldi (HB) | 0 / 75
|
||
24 / 75
| |||
Absentees
|
13 / 75
| ||
| Sources[10] | |||
Notes
- ^ Results for AP–PDP–UL in the 1984 election.
- ^ Unlike other electoral legislation in Spain, valid votes under the 1983 Basque electoral law did not include blank ballots.
- ^ With Carlos Garaikoetxea as EA's candidate.
- ^ a b c d Results for CP.
- ^ a b Does not include non-resident citizens.
- ^ The 1983 electoral law provided that blank ballots would not count as valid votes for the application of the 5 percent threshold in each district. However, this rule was not determinant in excluding any party from seat distribution during its time of application (the 1984 and 1986 elections). As a result, and for comparison purposes, blank ballots are shown here included within valid votes.
References
Opinion poll sources
- ^ a b c "Los sondeos pronostican diferencias mínimas entre el PNV y el PSOE". ABC (in Spanish). 27 November 1986.
- ^ "Gaikoetxea y Benegas mejoran posiciones ante elecciones vascas". El País (in Spanish). 23 November 1986.
- ^ "Garaikoetxea y los socialistas mejoran posiciones, aunque el PNV mantiene una exigua mayoría". El País (in Spanish). 23 November 1986.
- ^ "Ficha técnica". El País (in Spanish). 23 November 1986.
- ^ "El PNV obtendrá dos escaños más que el PSOE, según un sondeo del Gobierno vasco". ABC (in Spanish). 23 November 1986.
- ^ "PNV gana y PSOE es segundo, según encuesta del Gobierno vasco". Diario de Navarra (in Spanish). 15 November 1986.
- ^ "El PNV pierde respaldo, según un sondeo de EL PAÍS y la SER". El País (in Spanish). 15 November 1986.
- ^ "Garaikoetxea robará más de 10 escaños al PNV". El País (in Spanish). 15 November 1986.
- ^ "Ficha técnica del sondeo". El País (in Spanish). 15 November 1986.
- ^ a b c d e "Las primeras encuestas revelan la confusión del electorado nacionalista vasco". ABC (in Spanish). 19 October 1986.
- ^ "Ningún partido tendrá mayoría absoluta en el País Vasco". Diario de Navarra (in Spanish). 20 October 1986.
- ^ "Garaicoechea favorito en las elecciones vascas según una encuesta". Diario de Navarra (in Spanish). 8 October 1986.
- ^ "Una encuesta del PNV otorga la victoria a este partido". Diario de Navarra (in Spanish). 9 October 1986.
- ^ "Igualdad de fuerzas". ABC (in Spanish). 22 September 1986.
- ^ "Esta semana se decide si se disuelve el Parlamento Vasco y se convocan elecciones". Diario de Navarra (in Spanish). 22 September 1986.
- ^ a b c d "Preelectoral País Vasco 1986 (VI) (Estudio nº 1.562. Noviembre 1986)" (PDF). CIS (in Spanish). 20 November 1986.
- ^ a b c d "Estudio C.I.S. nº 1.560 ("País Vasco". Noviembre 1986)" (PDF). CIS (in Spanish). 10 November 1986.
- ^ a b c d "Estudio C.I.S. nº 1.557 (País Vasco. Noviembre 1986)" (PDF). CIS (in Spanish). 1 November 1986.
- ^ a b c d "Estudio C.I.S. nº 1.555 ("País Vasco". Octubre-noviembre 1986)" (PDF). CIS (in Spanish). 20 October 1986.
- ^ a b c d "Estudio C.I.S. nº 1.551 ("País Vasco". Octubre 1986)" (PDF). CIS (in Spanish). 10 October 1986.
- ^ a b c d "Estudio C.I.S. nº 1.548 ("Preelectoral País Vasco". Octubre 1986)" (PDF). CIS (in Spanish). 1 October 1986.
Other
- ^ Statute (1979), arts. 25 & 27–28.
- ^ LEPV (1983), reas. 1.
- ^ Statute (1979), art. 26 (suppl. by LOREG (1985), art. 42).
- ^ LGV (1981), arts. 7 & 50–51.
- ^ LGV (1981), art. 6.
- ^ Decree 202/1986 (1986), arts. 1–2.
- ^ Statute (1979), art. 26; LEPV (1983), art. 2 (suppl. by LOREG (1985), art. 42).
- ^ Statute (1979), art. 26; LEPV (1983), arts. 8–11; Decree 202/1986 (1986), art. 2.
- ^ LEPV (1983), arts. 11, 48 & 67 (suppl. by LOREG (1985), arts. 46 & 48).
- ^ a b c Lozano, Carles. "Elecciones al Parlamento Vasco / Eusko Legebilitzarra (desde 1980)". Historia Electoral.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 November 2024.
- ^ a b "Resultados Electorales" (in Spanish). Basque Government. Retrieved 28 December 2025.
Bibliography
- Ley Orgánica 3/1979, de 18 de diciembre, de Estatuto de Autonomía para el País Vasco (Organic Law 3/1979). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 18 December 1979 [version as of 22 December 1979]. BOE-A-1979-30177. Retrieved 12 March 2026.
- Ley 7/1981, de 30 de junio, sobre Ley de Gobierno (Law 7/1981). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 30 June 1981 [version as of 23 November 1988]. BOE-A-2012-5927. Retrieved 12 March 2026.
- Ley 28/1983, de 25 de noviembre, de Elecciones al Parlamento Vasco (Law 28/1983). Official State Gazette (in Spanish). 25 November 1983. BOE-A-2012-5194. Retrieved 16 May 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 [version as of 21 February 1986]. BOE-A-1985-11672. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
- Decreto 202/1986, de 30 de Septiembre, de Disolución del Parlamento Vasco y Convocatoria de Elecciones (PDF) (Decree 202/1986). Official Gazette of the Basque Country (in Spanish). 30 September 1986. Retrieved 16 May 2026.