Confidence and supply (24) Opposition (149) The Senate (Spanish: Senado) is the upper house of the Cortes Generales, which along with the Congress of Deputies – the lower chamber – comprises the Parliament of the Kingdom of Spain.

This house, along with the Congress of Deputies, was suppressed after the coup of General Miguel Primo de Rivera in 1923.

After the restoration of democracy during the Second Spanish Republic (1931-1939) the new regime opted for a unicameral system, which was continued under the Francoist dictatorship.

Either house may propose an ordinary law (or bill, Spanish: proyecto de ley).

Organic laws, which govern basic civil rights and regional devolution, need an absolute majority of both congress and senate to pass.

The process for constitutional amendments is more complicated: the rule is to require a three fifths (60%) of both houses, but if the Senate does not achieve such a supermajority and a joint congress-senate committee fails to resolve the issues, the Congress may force the amendment through with a two-thirds vote as long as an absolute majority of the Senate was in favour.

For example, Coalición Canaria lost its senate caucus in 2008 after electoral losses reduced its group from six to two.

[5][6] This allocation is heavily weighted in favor of small provinces; Madrid, with its 6.5 million people, and Soria, with 90,000 inhabitants, are each represented by four senators.

Candidates' names are organized in columns by party on a large (DIN A3 or larger) ochre-colored ballot called a sábana or bedsheet.

Panachage is allowed, but typically voters cast all three votes for candidates of a single party.

However, autonomous communities have considerable leeway, and a motion to appoint the regional senators often requires no more than a plurality: The last election was held on 23 July 2023.