Defensor del Pueblo challenges Supreme Court's suspension of overseas voting register
Defensor del Pueblo Ángel Gabilondo filed a 25-page constitutional appeal alleging that the Supreme Court overstepped its authority by freezing the census of Spanish nationals abroad.
Defensor del Pueblo Ángel Gabilondo submitted a 25-page amparo petition to the Constitutional Court, claiming the Supreme Court's provisional suspension of the overseas voter register exceeds its competence. He describes the suspension as a novel situation that threatens the active suffrage right guaranteed by Article 23 of the Constitution, generating legal insecurity. The petition targets decisions of the Supreme Court's Third Chamber, issued after challenges from Iustitia Europa and Vox, and seeks judicial correction.
Gabilondo notes that the filing does not follow the prescribed form for constitutional complaints. He emphasizes the irreversible harm to the fundamental voting right and warns that the precedent could enable future restrictions not expressly provided in electoral law. The Defensor del Pueblo will vacate his position on 16 November.
Why it matters
The case could reshape how Spain's highest courts handle voting rights for citizens living abroad.
How this story developed
- Oct 5 Spain's Supreme Court suspends overseas voting for new citizens under grandchildren law
- Oct 6 The Spanish Supreme Court has nullified the national arrest warrants for Carles Puigdemont and two former advisers, allowing him to return to Spain.
- Oct 6 Supreme Court magistrate Pablo Llarena cancelled the national arrest warrants for Puigdemont and his advisers.
- Oct 7 Supreme Court judge issued a provisional annulment of Puigdemont’s arrest warrant, pending a separate tribunal meeting on the full amnesty application.
- Oct 15 Ce.DEU submitted legal objections to the Supreme Court's voting suspension decree.
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