The majority of the Central Electoral Board decided last Thursday that it cannot rule on nationality procedures under the Democratic Memory Law.
In its closed-door meeting on July 16, 2026, nine of the thirteen members of the Central Electoral Board agreed that the body lacks competence to act on the circumstances allowing the granting of Spanish nationality.
Four members issued a dissenting vote stating that the October 2022 Instruction contains provisions contrary to the Democratic Memory Law and that the Board should order consulates and town halls to process applications only when exile for political, ideological or belief reasons is proven.
The dissenters, including constitutional law professor Carlos Vidal, argued that the Board has an obligation to prevent irregular growth of the electoral census and asked: "If the Central Electoral Board is not competent to put an end to a formidable and irreversible increase in the census against what is provided for in the Law, who would be?".
The majority resolution noted that the Board's functions are limited to the strictly electoral sphere.
