TheSpanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) remained the largest party overall, as well as in most regional parliaments. However, it suffered from a drop in popular support which saw it losing many of the absolute majorities it had obtained four years previously. As a result, several centre-right coalitions and alliances were able to oust the Socialists from government in four out of the twelve regional administrations it had held previous to the election. The main national opposition party, thePeople's Alliance (AP), having suffered from an internal crisis and the breakup of thePeople's Coalition in 1986, also lost support compared to the previous election. Its former allies, thePeople's Democratic Party (PDP) and theLiberal Party (PL), stood separately in the regional elections but remained unable to capitalize on AP's losses.
Benefitting from the two main parties' decline was former Spanish Prime MinisterAdolfo Suárez'sDemocratic and Social Centre (CDS), which became decisive for government formation in many regional assemblies.United Left (IU), a coalition made up by theCommunist Party of Spain (PCE) and other minor left-wing groups, remained stagnant at the PCE's 1983 results.
Determination of election day varied depending on theautonomous community, with each one having competency to establish its own regulations. Typically, thirteen out of the seventeen autonomous communities—all butAndalusia, theBasque Country,Catalonia andGalicia—had their elections fixed to be held within sixty days from the day of expiry of the regional assemblies, together with nationwide local elections.[1][2][3]
Individual poll results are listed in the table below in reverse chronological order, showing the most recent first, and using the date the survey's fieldwork was done, as opposed to the date of publication. If such date is 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. In the instance of a tie, the figures with the highest percentages are shaded. in the case of seat projections, they are displayed in bold and in a different font.
