Its Statute of Autonomy, the basic organic law of the community, defines it as the supreme institution of representation of the Asturian people.

Established in its current form in 1982, the General Junta is named after an Asturian political institution that existed from the Middle Ages to the 19th century.

The General Junta exercises legislative power, approves the budgets of the community, and holds to account the Council of Government, the executive branch, whose leader it elects as the "President of the Principality of Asturias".

The General Junta is made up of 45 members called "deputies" (in Spanish: diputados) elected every four years, though the President of the Principality may dissolve the parliament and trigger early elections.

34 members are returned for the Central district, which contains Avilés, Gijón and Oviedo, the three largest municipalities, and in total represents 888,293 people in 2010.