Cantabrian regional election, 2003

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25 May 2003

2007 →

All 39 seats in the Parliament of Cantabria
20 seats needed for a majority

Opinion polls

Registered

476,924

2.5%

Turnout

348,377 (73.0%)

4.2 pp

	First party	Second party	Third party

Leader	José Joaquín Martínez Sieso	Dolores Gorostiaga	Miguel Ángel Revilla
Party	PP	PSOE	PRC
Leader since	1995	16 December 2000	1983
Leader's seat	Cantabria	Cantabria	Cantabria
Last election	19 seats, 42.5%	14 seats, 33.1%	6 seats, 13.5%
Seats won	18	13	8
Seat change	1	1	2
Popular vote	146,796	103,608	66,480
Percentage	42.5%	30.0%	19.2%
Swing	0.0 pp	3.1 pp	5.7 pp

President before election

José Joaquín Martínez Sieso
PP

Elected President

Miguel Ángel Revilla
PRC

José Joaquín Martínez Sieso
PP

Miguel Ángel Revilla
PRC

The 2003 Cantabrian regional election was held on Sunday, 25 May 2003, to elect the 6th Parliament of the Autonomous Community of Cantabria. All 39 seats in the Parliament were up for election. The election was held simultaneously with regional elections in 12 other autonomous communities and local elections all throughout Spain.

Both the People's Party (PP) and the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) lost 1 seat each to the Regionalist Party of Cantabria (PRC), which won 8 seats. As neither had won an absolute majority, the PRC reinforced its position as parliamentary kingmaker, able to give the government to either of the two parties. The PRC, in a coalition with the PP since 1995, announced that it was not renewing the pact a third time due to "deteriorating relations" between both parties after 8 years of government, and that it would instead seek an alliance with the PSOE.

As a result of the election, PSOE and PRC reached a coalition agreement in which Miguel Ángel Revilla from the PRC was to be elected as regional President.

The Parliament of Cantabria was the devolved, unicameral legislature of the autonomous community of Cantabria, having legislative power in regional matters as defined by the Spanish Constitution and the Cantabrian Statute of Autonomy, as well as the ability to grant or revoke confidence from a President of the Autonomous Community. Voting for the Parliament was on the basis of universal suffrage, with all nationals over eighteen, registered in Cantabria and in full enjoyment of all political rights entitled to vote.

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