Spanish Transition to Democracy & Rule of Law

The Spanish Transition to Democracy

The transition process began with the death of General Franco. With the enactment of the last fundamental laws of the 1967 Franco-era Organic Law of the State, the problem of succession arose, and thus the continuity of the authority system. The former King, Don Juan Carlos, was appointed successor as head of state, and President Carrero Blanco's government was appointed. New facts arose that made the survival of the Franco regime irreversible: the assassination of Carrero Blanco in 1973, economic transformation involving changes in society, both in the active population and in customs and ideas, the transformation of the Catholic Church, and the conversion of the Greek and Portuguese dictatorships into democracies.

With the death of Franco, Carrero Blanco's appointed successor, Arias Navarro, opted for reformist politics in Francoist legislation, applying a false sense of opportunism. The local organic law was not implemented, the status of associations was not accepted, and there was incompatibility with parliamentary law and trade union reform. The death of the former head of government led by Navarro to fail again. The King replaced him with Adolfo Suarez as manager of the democratic process. There was an urgent need to respect the constitution to avoid breaking its components. The first step to take was to create a bridge law based on the fundamental laws of Franco himself.

The Law for Political Reform was created in 1976. It was a basic law that looked to the past and the future. This law would lead to the Constitution of 1978. The Law for Political Reform introduced principles such as popular sovereignty, the supremacy of the law, universal suffrage, and the recognition of political pluralism. It created a bicameral system with the Congress of Deputies and the Senate.

The Rule of Law in Spain

The rule of law is based on a series of principles established in the Constitution that provide a greater number of guarantees for citizens from public authorities. Rights are not effective without mandates given to the authorities (administration). There are two types of principles:

• Management of sources:
  • The principle of hierarchy
  • The principle of competition
  • The principle of space
  • The principle of time
• Operating principles of public authorities:
  • The principle of legality
  • The principle of legal certainty
  • The principle of advertising standards
  • The principle of retroactivity
  • The principle of accountability of public authorities
  • The principle of interdiction of the arbitrariness of public powers

Sources of Constitutional Law

The primary source of Constitutional Law is obviously the Constitution. Within this area of law, the rules contained in the constitutional bloc have meaning, including the Statute of Autonomy and organic laws regulating elections, which determine the composition and functions of constitutional bodies and regulate fundamental rights. These are interpreted in accordance with international treaties signed by Spain on these matters (Article 10.2 of the Spanish Constitution), with the force of law, as determined by the Constitutional Court. Parliamentary regulations, as internal standards of legislative power, are also included.

Among the unwritten rules are customs and constitutional conventions, not rules governing relations between constitutional bodies. Finally, the judgments of the Constitutional Court, as the ultimate interpreter of the Constitution, have a fundamental value in the exegesis and even supplementation of the supreme law.