The Parliament of Catalonia (Catalan: Parlament de Catalunya, ; is the unicameral legislature of Catalonia, Spain. It is formed by 135 members ("diputats"), who are elected every four years or after extraordinary dissolution,chosen by universal suffrage in lists with four constituencies, the Catalan provinces. The Parliament building is located in Ciutadella Park.
The most recent parliamentary elections were held on November 28, 2010. The Centre-Left coalition Government, made up of Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC), Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) and Initiative for Catalonia Greens (ICV), lost 22 seats, while the Centre-Right parties, Convergence and Union (CiU) and People's Party (PPC), gained a combined 18 seats. CiU now controls 62 of 135 seats, more than twice what any other party holds but have yet to negotiate a coalition deal to reach a 68 seat majority.
Also, Catalan Solidarity for Independence (SI), which is a new 2010 electoral coalition of six Catalan independentist minor parties, entered parliament for the first time. They elected 4 deputies to the chamber, making them the 6th largest party.
Famous quotes containing the word parliament:
“At the ramparts on the cliff near the old Parliament House I counted twenty-four thirty-two-pounders in a row, pointed over the harbor, with their balls piled pyramid-wise between them,—there are said to be in all about one hundred and eighty guns mounted at Quebec,—all which were faithfully kept dusted by officials, in accordance with the motto, “In time of peace prepare for war”; but I saw no preparations for peace: she was plainly an uninvited guest.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)