The Parliament of the Balearic Islands has appointed this Wednesday the three deputies who will defend in the Congress of Deputies the constitutional reform that would allow Formentera to elect for the first time a senator of its own, a step that marks the most advanced point of this process in two decades.
The delegation will be formed by Cristina Gil (PP), Pilar Costa (PSIB) and Llorenç Córdoba (Sa Unió), deputy for Formentera. The proposal has been approved in the
The appointment comes a day after the plenary of the Parliament reaffirmed the mandate of 2018, in the same terms approved seven years ago, to request the reform of Article 69.3 of the Spanish Constitution. With this gesture, the House officially reactivates the processing in Congress, which remained blocked since then, and thus complies with the formal requirement of the Presidency of Congress, headed by Francina Armengol.
The two agreements – the reaffirmation of the 2018 mandate and the designation of the parliamentary delegation –consolidate the institutional progress of a historical demand of Formentera, which since 2007, when its Consell Insular was constituted, claims its own representation in the Upper House.
“The process is on track. After years of standstill, we have put order, rhythm and coordination. I have very good expectations that this reform will go ahead and that Formentera will have the representation it deserves,” said Llorenç Córdoba after the vote.
A demand for institutional justice
The creation of the senator for Formentera seeks to put the Pitiusa Minor on a par with the rest of the islands of the State that already elect their own representative in the Senate, such as El Hierro or La Gomera, in the Canary Islands. The agreement has a broad political consensus and responds to a question of “democratic justice and institutional coherence”, in the words of the official note issued by the Parliament.
The process was reactivated this legislature after a seven-year blockage in Congress, as a result of the initiative promoted by Llorenç Córdoba, in the framework of point 20 of the July 2023 investiture agreement, with the collaboration of the Balearic Government and the Popular Party. Since then, there have been three key steps: the parliamentary question in June to demand progress, the Resolution Proposal in October, approved with broad support, and the reaffirmation of the mandate and designation of the delegation in November.
Next steps
With the delegation already formed, the Parliament will send to the Congress of Deputies the official composition for inclusion in the agenda of an upcoming plenary session. There, the three representatives -Gil, Costa and Cordoba-will be in charge of defending the modification of Article 69.3 of the Constitution and argue the institutional uniqueness of Formentera within the State.
