27 September election: the results

The Via Lluire demonstration for independence on 11 September 2015. Photo: Jordi Venura i Plans

The Catalans turned out in huge numbers for yesterday’s parliamentary election, which had been billed by President Artur Mas as a plebiscite on independence.

While the pro-independence parties gained a majority of parliamentary seats, they didn’t succeed in winning more than 50% of the vote – some commentators view the figures as a victory for the secessionists, and others as a failure.

According to this morning’s figures, 77% of all those eligible to vote did so, exceeding all previous participation records.

The 27 September results as at 11.30am on 28 September

Pro-independence coalition Junts pel Si gained nearly 40% of the votes and 62 seats in parliament. The CUP – the other pro-independence force – gained 10 seats, with just over 8% of the vote. Together this gives the pro-independence groups a majority 73 seats out of the total 135. While these parties have pledged to work together towards independence, there are deep divisions on other issues which could cause problems in the future.

What’s more, the pro-independence parties have received less than 50% of the votes (the proportional representation system doesn’t precisely reflect the percentages in the parliamentary seats which are won). This means that if the vote were to be viewed as a referendum on the future of Catalunya, the pro-independence argument has not emerged victorious.

Looking at the local results, El Perelló is the most pro-independence town in Baix Ebre: 81% of the citizens’ votes went to Junts pel Si and the CUP. Nearly 83% of El Perelló’s eligible population voted.

The way forward will be worked out between the parties over the next few weeks. Even though Junts pel Si won the biggest share of votes, it’s not certain that leader Artur Mas will be the next president of the Generalitat.

Read our previous article for more about each party.