The political system of Spain was established in accordance with the Constitution of this country that was drafted in the year 1978. According to this constitution, Spain is a democratic and a social state. This country follows a system of parliamentary monarchy and this basically means that the monarch is the head of state whereas the Prime minister is the head of the government. To understand the political hierarchy of this nation, it is important to know that this country is divided into the Executive level, The Legislative level and the judicial level. The following is a detailed account of the same.
A) The Crown
According to the constitution, the King is considered the Head of State and is also the Supreme Commander in chief of the armed forces. The Crown has two major functions and these include representing the unity of the state and representing the Spanish State as a whole. The following is the hierarchy of the Crown-
1. The King-The King moderates and regulates the functions of the government and assumes the role of Spain in international relations. The King is the commander in chief of the armed forces of this country.
B) The Executive Branch
The government of Spain exercises the main executive functions and comprises of the Prime Minister, deputy ministers and other ministers. This is that leg of the political hierarchy of the nation which takes care of both the foreign policy and the domestic policy. Apart from this, the government also sets economic and defensepolicies.
1. The Prime minister-The prime minister of Spain is also known as the President of the government.
2. Deputy prime ministers-The deputy prime ministers is also known as the vice president of the government.
3. Ministry of foreign affairs
4. Ministry of justice
5. Ministry of defense
6. Ministry of finance
7. Ministry of home affairs
8. Ministry of development
9. Ministry of education
10. Ministry of agriculture , nutrition and environment
11. Ministry of economy
12. Ministry of health
13. Ministry of industry, energy and tourism
C) The Judicial Branch
The judiciary system of Spain is another branch of the political system and is composed of the judges and the magistrates. This branch is also composed of the courts whose hierarchy is given as follows:
1. The Supreme Court-This is the highest ranking court of the country and is headed by the president
2. The constitutional court-This court has jurisdiction all over Spain.
D) The Legislative Branch
This is the third branch of the political system of Spain and consists of the following legs or branches:
1. The congress of deputies-This is that section of the Legislative branch which can have from 300 to 400 deputies.
2. The Senate-This is the upper chamber or house of the Legislative branch which consists of senators.