The Spanish "New" Regions: Territorial and Political Pluralism

Abstract

One of the central problems to be solved by democratic transition in Spain was the old, and often violent, regional conflict. The general application of a regional system in a country where only a few territories had strong regional claims raises the question: What are the functions of the new regional institutions? The complexity of the institutional arrangement and the heterogeneity among regions make conflict (both center-regions and also region-region) a permanent possibility. A complex interplay between regional pluralism and political pluralism is suggested.