Until the 2003 election, the results in this district were also used to determine the composition of the Island Council of Ibiza and Formentera during the same term as the Parliament, with Formentera counting for 1 out of the 13 seats of the Council—11 out of 12 from 1983 to 1987—. From the 2007 election onwards, Formentera has an independent Council, the composition of which is determined by the local elections of the municipality. Additionally, on 3 April 1979 the first independent election for the Island Council of Ibiza and Formentera was held, electing 12 councillors.[2]
The constituency was created as per the Statute of Autonomy of the Balearic Islands of 1983 and was first contested in the 1983 regional election. The Statute provided for the four main islands in the Balearic archipelago—Majorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera—to be established as multi-member districts in the Parliament of the Balearic Islands, with this regulation being maintained under the 1986 regional electoral law. Each constituency is allocated a fixed number of seats: 33 for Majorca, 13 for Menorca, 12 for Ibiza and 1 for Formentera. The exception was the 1983 election, when these numbers were 30, 12, 11 and 1, respectively.[3][4][5]
Voting is on the basis of universal suffrage, which comprises all nationals over eighteen, registered in the Balearic Islands and in full enjoyment of their political rights. Amendments to the electoral law in 2011 required for Balearic citizens abroad to apply for voting before being permitted to vote, a system known as "begged" or expat vote (Spanish: Voto rogado).[6] Seats are elected using the D'Hondt method and a closed listproportional representation, with an electoral threshold of five percent of valid votes—which includes blank ballots; until a 1995 reform, the threshold was set at three percent—being applied in each constituency.[3][4][5] The use of the D'Hondt method may result in a higher effective threshold, depending on the district magnitude.[7]
The electoral law allows for parties and federations registered in the interior ministry, coalitions and groupings of electors to present lists of candidates. Parties and federations intending to form a coalition ahead of an election are required to inform the relevant Electoral Commission within ten days of the election call—fifteen before 1985—whereas groupings of electors need to secure the signature of at least one percent of the electorate in the constituencies for which they seek election—one-thousandth of the electorate, with a compulsory minimum of 500 signatures, until 1985—disallowing electors from signing for more than one list of candidates.[5][8][9]
^"Real Decreto 119/1979, de 26 de enero, por el que se regulan las elecciones de los Consejos Insulares del Archipiélago Balear". Royal Decreeof26 January 1979. Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 February 2020.
^ ab"Ley Orgánica 2/1983, de 25 de febrero, de Estatuto de Autonomía para las islas Baleares". Organic LawNo. 2of25 February 1983. Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 September 2017.
^ ab"Ley Orgánica 1/2007, de 28 de febrero, de reforma del Estatuto de Autonomía de las Illes Balears". Organic LawNo. 1of28 February 2007. Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 September 2017.
^ abc"Ley 8/1986, de 26 de noviembre, Electoral de la Comunidad Autónoma de las Islas Baleares". LawNo. 8of26 November 1986. Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 February 2020.
^"Real Decreto-ley 20/1977, de 18 de marzo, sobre Normas Electorales". Royal Decree-LawNo. 20of18 March 1977. Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 December 2019.
^"Ley Orgánica 5/1985, de 19 de junio, del Régimen Electoral General". Organic LawNo. 5of19 June 1985. Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 January 2020.