Supreme Court blocks Sánchez's last attempt at electoral controversy regarding the 2027 elections: The Law of Grandchildren

The Supreme Court has conditionally paralyzed the electoral effects of enrollments in the Register of Absent Residents (CERA) derived from the Law of Grandchildren, until there is a definitive resolution on the matter. This measure affects those already registered in CERA, although with an exception for very specific cases of exile.

## A brake on the Law of Grandchildren

It appears that the **Law of Grandchildren**, which allowed children and grandchildren of exiled Spaniards to obtain nationality, has run into a major obstacle. The **Supreme Court** has applied the brakes to the electoral effects of new enrollments in the Register of Absent Residents (CERA). The reality is that until there is a binding judgment on the merits of the case, these individuals' votes are suspended.

The **Attorney General's Office** attempted to argue that suspending this was infringing upon the right to active suffrage, but the Supreme Court did not give much heed to this. They distinguished between two situations. On one hand, those who have already obtained nationality through this route and are not yet in the CERA. Their case will continue to be processed, but their enrollment in the census will remain paralyzed until a judgment is issued. On the other hand, those already in the CERA will have their electoral effects suspended for future elections.

## The exception that confirms the rule

It is not a total blockage, mind you. The Supreme Court has introduced a small sustancia ilegal in this suspension. This will not apply to those who, as certified by the holders of Consular Registers, were born outside Spain and are children or grandchildren of Spaniards of origin who had to go into exile for political, ideological, religious beliefs, or sensual orientation reasons. This applies if it is proven that they lost or renounced Spanish nationality without being subject to a specific interpretation of an October **2022** instruction. For this to work, the Central Electoral Board must immediately request certification of these cases from consular registries.

## Separating files and deadlines

In addition to the suspension, the Supreme Court has ordered the Census Office to begin separating the files. They must distinguish between those coming directly from the scenarios of exile contemplated by the law, and those processed based on that interpretation of the **2022** instruction. The Central Electoral Board also has its role, and if the Census Office fails to provide a complementary report within the set deadlines – **fifteen days** for the report and **ten days** for the approval of the instruction – they will face an ultimatum.

The decision arrives one day after a hearing where the Attorney General's Office warned that suspending these electoral effects would abusa a fundamental right. Now, the electoral weight of thousands of new enrollments hangs in limbo until the Supreme Court Chamber resolves this litigation, which is undoubtedly key to understanding the future of the law and the right to vote.