The security mechanism that will ensure security during the upcoming general elections of July 23 in La Rioja will be composed of 734 agents belonging to the National Police -133-, Civil Guard -557- and local police -44-.
In Spain, the total number of this operation amounts to 90,282 members of the State Security Forces and Corps. Of these, 28,792 belong to the National Police (which must be joined by 99 officers from the unit attached to the Generalitat Valenciana) and 41,054 to the Civil Guard.
For their part, and in the territories under their jurisdiction, the Mossos d’Esquadra will deploy 4,055 agents, the Ertzaintza 1,217, the Foral Police of Navarra 23 and the Canary Islands Police another 67. The device is completed by 14,768 officers from different municipal police forces.
In the breakdown by autonomous communities, Andalusia will have the largest police deployment, with 18,636 agents, followed by the Community of Madrid, with 10,775 troops; Catalonia, with 9,108 agents, and the Valencian Community, with 9,083.
MONITORING AND PROTECTION OF THE ELECTORAL PROCESS
Instruction 7/2023 signed by the Secretary of State for Security, Rafael Pérez, on June 26 establishes a set of security and protection measures that allow and guarantee that the fundamental right to political participation can be exercised on July 23 in optimal conditions of freedom and security, and protected from threats aimed at disturbing its normal development.
Among other aspects, this instruction includes the general guidelines for the coordination and operational action of the various State Security Forces and Bodies involved in the police mechanism for the protection of the electoral day, as well as the measures for the protection of the electoral system, all whose infrastructures will be considered ‘critical’ and already have the necessary security deployment.
In addition, the order of the Secretary of State establishes a set of preventive, reactive and coordination measures for possible incidents in the field of cybersecurity that may affect the networks and information systems that support computer systems related to elections, campaigns, public administrations and elections, as well as other relevant actors in the field, ensuring the security of all computer aspects of the electoral process and guaranteeing the holding of general elections.
To this end, the instruction includes an Extraordinary Cybersecurity Device (DEC-EG23) coordinated by the Cybersecurity Coordination Office (OCC) of the Ministry of the Interior and in which the units of the Security Forces specialized in cybercrime and the national Computer Emergency Response Teams (CSIRT) of reference will participate.
The security program for the 23J has already passed the previous phase, begun on June 28, and is in the alert phase, which will continue until July 21. That day, at 8:00 p.m., the critical phase will begin, designed to provide protection for the end-of-campaign events, the day of reflection and the voting day on Sunday 23 until the closure of the polling stations, the transfer of the documentation related to the ballot and the completion of the electoral activity.