Electoral board votes against challenge

Spain's Central Electoral Board decided on Monday, 14 September 2026, not to challenge a Supreme Court order that paused voting registrations for descendants of emigrants naturalized under the Democratic Memory Law. Following a two-hour session at the Congress of Deputies, the thirteen-member body rejected an appeal against the court's precautionary measure by a seven-to-six margin. The board's president, Supreme Court magistrate Eduardo Calvo, joined conservative members to form the majority, while progressive-aligned academics and three Supreme Court magistrates voted to challenge the ruling. A secondary proposal to issue concrete operating instructions on executing the judicial order was also rejected by eight votes to five. Board members resolved instead to comply directly with the judicial mandate while avoiding an institutional confrontation between the electoral arbiter and the high court.

Against appeal7

In favor of appeal6

Against appeal

7 votes

In favor of appeal

6 votes

Data from the article text

Legal challenge over ministerial instruction

The dispute centers on the 2022 Democratic Memory Law, colloquially termed the grandchildren law, which granted Spanish citizenship to descendants of individuals who lost or renounced nationality due to exile during the Civil War and Franco dictatorship. The litigation began after legal appeals brought by the political party Vox and the association Iustitia Europa challenged an administrative instruction issued by the Directorate General for Legal Security and Public Attestation. That ministerial guideline established a presumption of exile for anyone who left Spain between 18 July 1936 and 31 December 1955, expanding eligibility beyond political exiles to broader descendant groups. The Fourth Section of the Supreme Court's Contentious-Administrative Chamber ordered a precautionary halt to foreign voter registrations under that instruction, citing a real risk of distorting electoral transparency as the foreign electoral roll (CERA) reached 2.7 million people.

Census office findings and registry breakdown

To execute the judicial ruling, the electoral board instructed consular registries and the Electoral Census Office to separate applicant files. Consular offices must distinguish between individuals naturalized strictly under the provisions of the 2022 statute and those enrolled under the contested ministerial instruction. Meanwhile, an Electoral Census Office report submitted to the board concluded that voters independently choose their registration municipality without ex-officio assignments occurring in practice. The document affirmed that consular registration criteria ensure objectivity, equality, and transparency across jurisdictions, directly addressing opposition assertions that consulates could arbitrarily assign voters to specific electoral districts.

Political reactions and court timeline concerns

Cabinet ministers and opposition leaders voiced opposing positions following the decision. Minister of Territorial Policy Ángel Víctor Torres confirmed that the government will comply with the electoral board's resolution while expressing disagreement with the restrictions placed on overseas citizens.

“Those Spaniards are Spaniards just like the rest of Spaniards because the Democratic Memory Law approved in the Cortes in 2022 allowed it.”

Tribunal sources indicated that the Supreme Court aims to deliver a final judgment before the municipal and regional elections scheduled for May 2027. However, high court magistrates noted that if thousands of affected citizens file individual interventions as co-defendants to defend their voting rights, the judicial proceedings could experience procedural delays lasting several years.