1903 Spanish general election

← 1901 26 April 1903 (Congress) 10 May 1903 (Senate) 1905 →
All 403 seats in theCongress of Deputies and 180 (of 360) seats in theSenate 202 seats needed for a majority in the Congress of Deputies
First party Second party Third party   Leader Francisco Silvela Eugenio Montero Ríos Nicolás Salmerón Party Conservative Liberal Republican Leader since 1899 1902 1903 Leader's seat Piedrahita Senator (for life) Barcelona Last election 91D · 41S[a] 252D · 117S[b] 15D · 3S[c] Seats won 228D · 101S 95D · 50S 28D · 1S Seat change 137D · 60S 157D · 67S 13D · 2S   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Leader José Canalejas None[d] José María Vallés Party Democratic Tetuanist Federal Leader since 1902 — 1901 Leader's seat Alcoy — La Bisbal Last election Did not contest 10D · 7S 2D · 0S Seats won 9D · 4S 6D · 6S 8D · 1S Seat change 9D · 4S 4D · 1S 6D · 1S
Election results byCongress of Deputies electoral constituency and district
Prime Minister before election Francisco Silvela Conservative Prime Minister after election Francisco Silvela Conservative

Ageneral election was held inSpain on Sunday, 26 April (for theCongress of Deputies) and on Sunday, 10 May 1903 (for theSenate), to elect the members of the 11thCortes under theSpanish Constitution of 1876, during theRestoration period. All 403 seats in the Congress of Deputies were up for election, as well as 180 of 360 seats in the Senate.

Since thePact of El Pardo, an informal system known asturno orturnismo was operated by themonarchy and the country's two main parties—theConservatives and theLiberals—todetermine in advance the outcome of elections by means ofelectoral fraud, often achieved through the territorialclientelistic networks of local bosses (thecaciques), ensuring that both parties would have rotating periods in power. As a result, elections were oftenneither truly free nor fair, though they could be more competitive in the country's urban centres where caciquism was weaker.

Prime MinisterPráxedes Mateo Sagasta's last period in power was dominated by the rise ofCatalan regionalism and a string of worker strikes, as well as a number of issues—such as the religious and the educational questions—in which the government's results were mixed. A deteriorating health condition forced Sagasta's resignation on 6 December 1902, with power being handed over toFrancisco Silvela and his Conservative Party; Sagasta would end up dying one month later, on 5 January. As a result, 1903 was the first election in the Restoration period not to be contested either by Sagasta or byAntonio Cánovas del Castillo, both of whom had been the regime's pillars by ensuring its duration and stability for decades. It was also the first election withAlfonso XIII asKing regnant, following hiscoming of age and the end ofhis mother's regency.

Following theBourbon Restoration in 1874, theSpanish Constitution of 1876 enshrined Spain as asemi-constitutional monarchy, awarding themonarch—under theroyal prerogative—theright of legislative initiative together with the bicameralCortes; the capacity toveto laws passed by the legislative body; the power to appointgovernment members (including theprime minister); the ability to grant or denyparliamentary dissolution, theadjournment oflegislative sessions and the signature ofroyal decrees; as well as the title ofcommander-in-chief of thearmed forces.^[1][2] The monarch would play a key role in theturno system by appointing and dismissing governments, which would then organizeelections to provide themselves with a parliamentary majority. This informalsystem allowed the two major "dynastic" political parties at the time, theConservatives and theLiberals—characterized asoligarchic,elite parties with loose structures dominated by internal factions, each led by powerful individuals—to alternate in power by means ofelectoral fraud (pucherazo). This was achieved by assigning candidates to districts before the elections were held (encasillado), then arrange their victory through the links between theMinistry of Governance and the territorialclientelistic networks of provincial governors and local bosses (thecaciques), excluding minor parties from the power sharing.^[3][4]

The last period in power ofPráxedes Mateo Sagasta (1901–1902) saw thecoming of age ofKing Alfonso XIII in May 1902, but also the continuation of the social and regionalist conflicts that had afflicted previous governments. A general strike in Barcelona in February 1902 was violently suppressed, while the government proved unable to address the improvement of labour conditions demanded by the working classes.^[5] Sagasta's cabinet also proved unable to resolve the religious question—regarding a disproportionate growth in the establishment ofreligious congregations, considered contrary to law—nor to tackle Catalan regionalism through decentralizing formulas, but was able to approve a major reform of theeducation system underwent by theCount of Romanones,public instruction minister (comprising a new study plan insecondary education, the reestablishment ofacademic freedom, the attribution to the State of the payment of primary school teachers and an expansion ofcompulsory schooling).^[6]

Sagasta tendered his resignation as prime minister two times throughout 1902—first toQueen Regent Maria Christina in March, then to the newly-crowned King Alfonso XIII in November—but they were both rejected. However, growing criticism from the opposition, waning support within his party and a deteriorating health condition forced his final resignation on 6 December and the entrustment of power toFrancisco Silvela of the Conservative Party. Sagasta would die ofbronchopneumonia one month after leaving office, on 5 January 1903, at age 77.^[6][7][8]

Under the1876 Constitution, the SpanishCortes were envisaged as "co-legislative bodies", based on a nearlyperfect bicameral system.^[9] Both theCongress of Deputies and theSenate had legislative, control and budgetary functions, sharing equal powers except for laws on contributions or public credit, thefirst reading of which corresponded to Congress, andimpeachment processes againstgovernment ministers, in which each chamber had separate powers ofindictment (Congress) andtrial (Senate).^[10][11]

Voting for theCongress of Deputies was on the basis ofuniversal manhood suffrage, which comprised all national males over 25 years of age, having at least a two-year residency in a municipality and in full enjoyment of their civil rights.^{[12][13][14][15]} Additionally, voters were required to not being sentenced—by a final court ruling—to perpetual disqualification from political rights or public offices, to afflictive penalties not legally rehabilitated at least two years in advance, nor to other criminal penalties that remained unserved at the time of the election; neither beinglegally incapacitated,bankrupt,insolvent,debtors ofpublic funds (including their substitutes orjointly liable parties), norhomeless.^[12]

The Congress of Deputies was entitled to one seat per each 50,000 inhabitants. 95 members were elected in 27multi-member constituencies using apartial block voting system: in constituencies electing eight seats or more, electors could vote for no more than three candidates less than the number of seats to be allocated; in those with more than four seats and up to eight, for no more than two less; and in those with more than one seat and up to four, for no more than one less. The remaining 308 seats were elected insingle-member districts usingplurality voting and distributed among theprovinces of Spain in proportion to their populations.^[16][17][18] Additionally, literaryuniversities,economic societies of Friends of the Country and officially organizedchambers of commerce, industry and agriculture were entitled to one seat per each 5,000 registered voters that they comprised.^[19]

As a result of the aforementioned allocation, each Congress multi-member constituency was entitled the following seats:^[17]

Voting for the elective part of theSenate was on the basis ofcensitary suffrage, which comprisedarchbishops andbishops (in the ecclesiastical councils); full academics (in the royal academies);rectors,full professors, enrolleddoctors, directors of secondary education institutes and heads of special schools in their respective territories (in the universities); members with at least a three-year-old membership (in the economic societies); major taxpayers and Spanish citizens of age, being householders residing in Spain and in full enjoyment of their political and civil rights (fordelegates in thelocal councils); andprovincial deputies.^[20]

180 seats in the Senate were elected using anindirect,write-in,two-roundmajority voting system. Voters in the economic societies, the local councils and major taxpayers elected delegates—equivalent in number to one per each 50 members (in each economic society) or to one-sixth of the councillors (in each local council), with an initial minimum of one—who, together with other voting-able electors, would in turn vote for senators. The provinces ofBarcelona,Madrid andValencia were allocated four seats each, whereas each of the remaining provinces was allocated three seats, for a total of 150.^[21] The remaining 30 were allocated to special districts comprising a number of institutions, electing one seat each: thearchdioceses ofBurgos,Granada,Santiago de Compostela,Seville,Tarragona,Toledo,Valencia,Valladolid andZaragoza; the six oldest royal academies (theRoyal Spanish;History;Fine Arts of San Fernando;Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences;Moral and Political Sciences andMedicine); the universities ofMadrid,Barcelona,Granada,Oviedo,Salamanca,Santiago,Seville,Valencia,Valladolid andZaragoza; and the economic societies of Madrid, Barcelona, León, Seville and Valencia.^[22][23][24]

An additional 180 seats comprised senators in their own right—the monarch's offspring and theheir apparent oncecoming of age;grandees of Spain with an annual income of at leastPts 60,000 (from their own real estate or from rights that enjoy the same legal consideration);captain generals of theArmy andadmirals of theNavy; thePatriarch of the Indies and archbishops; and the presidents of theCouncil of State, theSupreme Court, theCourt of Auditors and theSupreme Council of War and Navy, after two years of service—as well assenators for life appointed directly by the monarch.^[22]

The law provided forby-elections to fill seatsvacated in both the Congress and Senate throughout the legislative term.^[25][26]

For the Congress, Spanish citizens of age, of secular status, in full enjoyment of their civil rights and with the legal capacity to vote could run for election, provided that they were notcontractors of public works or services, within the territorial scope of their contracts; nor holders of government-appointed offices and presidents or members of provincial deputations—during their tenure of office and up to one year after their dismissal—in constituencies within the whole or part of their respective area of jurisdiction, except for government ministers andcivil servants in theCentral Administration.^[27][28] A number of other positions were exempt from ineligibility, provided that no more than 40 deputies benefitted from these:^[29][30]

• Civil, military and judicial positions with a permanent residence inMadrid and a yearly public salary of at least Pts 12,500;
• The holders of a number of positions: the president, prosecutors and chamber presidents of theterritorial court of Madrid; the rector and full professors of theCentral University of Madrid; inspectors of engineers; andgeneral officers of the Army and Navy based in Madrid.

For the Senate, eligibility was limited to Spanish citizens over 35 years of age and not subject tocriminal prosecution,disfranchisement norasset seizure, provided that they were entitled to be appointed as senators in their own right or belonged or had belonged to one of the following categories:^[31][32]

• Those who had ever served as senators before the promulgation of the 1876 Constitution; and deputies having served in at least three different congresses or eight terms;
• The holders of a number of positions:presidents of the Senate andthe Congress; government ministers; bishops; grandees of Spain not eligible as senators in their own right; and presidents and directors of the royal academies;
• Provided an annual income of at least Pts 7,500 from either their own property, salaries from jobs that cannot be lost except for legally proven cause, or from retirement, withdrawal or termination: full academics of the aforementioned corporations on the first half of the seniority scale in their corps; first-class inspectors-general of the corps of civil, mining and forest engineers; and full professors with at least four years of seniority in their category and practice;
• Provided two prior years of service: Army'slieutenant generals and Navy'svice admirals; and other members and prosecutors of the Council of State, the Supreme Court, the Court of Auditors, the Supreme Council of War and Navy, and the dean of the Court of Military Orders;
• Ambassadors after two years of service andplenipotentiaries after four;
• Those with an annual income of Pts 20,000 or were taxpayers with a minimum quota of Pts 4,000 in direct contributions at least two years in advance, provided that they either belonged to theSpanish nobility, had been previously deputies, provincial deputies or mayors in provincial capitals or towns over 20,000 inhabitants.

Other causes of ineligibility for the Senate were imposed on territorial-level officers in government bodies and institutions—during their tenure of office and up to three months after their dismissal—in constituencies within the whole or part of their respective area of jurisdiction; contractors of public works or services;tax collectors and their guarantors; debtors of public funds (including their substitutes or jointly liable parties); deputies; local councillors (exceptthose in Madrid); and provincial deputies by their respective provinces.^[33]

The term of each chamber of theCortes—the Congress and one-half of the elective part of the Senate—expired five years from the date of their previous election, unless they weredissolved earlier.^[34] Theprevious elections were held on 19 May 1901 for the Congress and on 2 June 1901 for the Senate, which meant that the chambers' terms would have expired on 19 May and 2 June 1906, respectively.

The monarch had the prerogative to dissolve both chambers at any given time—either jointly or separately—and call asnap election.^[35][36] There was no constitutional requirement for concurrent elections to the Congress and the Senate, nor for the elective part of the Senate to be renewed in its entirety except in the case that a full dissolution was agreed by the monarch. Still, there was only one case of a separate election (for the Senate in 1877) and no half-Senate elections taking place under the 1876 Constitution.

TheCortes were officially dissolved on 26 March 1903, with the dissolutiondecree settingelection day for 26 April (Congress) and 10 May 1903 (Senate) and scheduling for both chambers to reconvene on 18 May.^[37]

← Summary of the 26 April 1903Congress of Deputies election results→

Parties and alliances		Popular vote		Seats
		Votes	%
	Conservative Party (PC)			228
	Liberal Party (PL)			95
	Republican Union (UR)			28
	Democratic Party (PD)			9
	Federal Republican Party (PRF)			8
	Liberal Reformist Party (PLR)			7
	Traditionalist Communion (Carlist) (CT)			7
	Tetuanist Conservatives (T)			6
	Regionalist League (LR)			4
	Integrist Party (PI)			3
	Independents (INDEP)			8
Total				403
Votes cast / turnout
Abstentions
Registered voters
Sources[38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45]

← Summary of the 10 May 1903Senate of Spain election results→

Parties and alliances		Seats
	Conservative Party (PC)	101
	Liberal Party (PL)	50
	Tetuanist Conservatives (T)	6
	Democratic Party (PD)	4
	Regionalist League (LR)	2
	Republican Union (UR)	1
	Traditionalist Communion (Carlist) (CT)	1
	Federal Republicans Party (PRF)	1
	Liberal Reformist Party (PLR)	1
	Independents (INDEP)	4
	Archbishops (ARCH)	9
Total elective seats		180
Sources[46][47][48][49][50][51]

• 
  Election results by constituency (Congress).

• 1903 elections in Spain
• 1903 in Spain
• General elections in Spain
• April 1903 in Europe

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