This week, the Congress and the Senate are set to finalize the renewal of the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ) by appointing twenty members—ten from each chamber. These individuals will replace those who have been in office since their mandate expired in December 2018. Additionally, the Senate will consider judicial reforms aimed at addressing the issue of “revolving doors” in the justice system, initiatives pushed by Spain’s two major political parties.
The twenty candidates, which include twelve judicial members and eight esteemed legal professionals, have been agreed upon by the Popular Party (PP) and the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE). Voting in the Congress is scheduled for Tuesday, followed by a vote in the Senate the next day. Once appointed, the new council will have three to seven days to elect its president, who will also serve as the head of the Supreme Court.
The voting process involves secret ballots requiring a qualified majority—three-fifths of each chamber, equivalent to 210 votes in Congress and 159 in the Senate. This threshold is expected to be comfortably met with support from the two main parties. Sumar, which has put forward two of the candidates, has been supportive of the election process thus far, but it remains unclear if they will vote for all candidates or only for those they proposed, Inés Herreros and Carlos Preciado.
It appears that participation in the voting will primarily involve the two dominant parties and a few others, as many other political groups have chosen to stay out of the process, noting they were not consulted regarding the candidates.
During the qualifications review, jurists from the three main parties and Union the People of Navarre participated, but many other coalition partners chose to abstain to highlight their disapproval of the bipartisan agreement.
The judicial representatives proposed by Congress include Ángel Arozamena (Supreme Court judge), Esther Erice (Judge of the Superior Court of Justice of Navarre), and several others. The Senate will vote on candidates such as José Antonio Montero and Esther Rojo among others.
The Senate is also slated to vote on a new Constitutional Court judge on the same day, to fill a vacancy that has been open since July 2022. The position was agreed to be filled by José María Macías, who previously served on the CGPJ.
On Tuesday, Congress will also send a proposed law to the Senate that aims to amend the Judiciary Act and the Statute of the Public Prosecutor’s Office. This reform seeks to eliminate the so-called “revolving doors” in the justice sector, strengthen majorities for approving judicial appointments, and encourage the new CGPJ to suggest changes to the process of selecting members.
The proposed changes introduce a new set of incompatibilities regarding the appointment of the Attorney General, specifying that individuals who have held certain political roles in the past five years cannot be appointed to this position. As the legislative process unfolds, the PSOE and PP have primarily made technical adjustments and rejected amendments suggested by Sumar, which ultimately chose to abstain from voting in committee, while other groups either voted against or did not participate.
The legislation will move to the Senate, which is expected to review it on the 24th. After going through committees, it is anticipated that the amendment will be approved at the end of the month, marking a significant step in reforming the judicial landscape in Spain.
Image and News Source: https://www.infobae.com/espana/agencias/2024/07/22/las-cortes-culminaran-esta-semana-la-renovacion-del-cgpj-con-el-nombramiento-parlamentario-de-los-nuevos-vocales/
