The Spanish Transition as a Model of Political Consolidation

Abstract

The article analyses the Spanish Transition from a dictatorship to a democracy as a process of political change during the period from Franco’s death in 1975 until the arrival of the Socialists to Power in 1982. Over this period, the political parties had reached a consensus, which contributed to reconciliation among the Spaniards culminating in the approval of the Constitution in 1978, which in its turn resulted in the creation of a rule-of-law state. The key people of the transition were King Juan Carlos I, who supported the democratic system; Adolfo Suárez, who became an active stateman under Franco’s regime, and was appointed Head of Government by the King during the transition; and Torcuato Fernández Miranda, President of the Franco’s Courts. During the Transition the sectarianism was abandoned, and a shared idea arose that our country was a democracy similarly to other European countries around us. The transition has been defined as a “model” because it took root, and democracy quickly consolidated. It has become a historical feat with no precedents, but above all we have to understand the historical context in which this occurred. The transition was possible thanks to genuine consensus among the Spaniards. Recently, an idea has emerged from the communist far left, and some socialists, along with separatists, connected with the 2008 crisis, which calls for the repeal of the constitutional order and the monarchy. The proponents of this idea consider monarchy a continuation of Franco’s regime. However, it is evident that the Constitution ensures and guarantees Spaniards’ rights and freedoms.