“Keeping up Appearances”: Torcuato Fernández-Miranda, “Heresthetics” and the Spanish Law for Political Reform

This article attempts to explain an unexpected political outcome: Why, when it would result in their own political demise, did an overwhelming majority in the Francoist parliament vote in favour of the Law for Political Reform in 1976? Based on the concept of heresthetics, this article analyses the strategic manoeuvres of Torcuato Fernández-Miranda, the president of the Francoist Cortes, which led to the passage of the Law. A thematic analysis of the three days of debate over the Law in the Cortes shows the way in the which the discussion was raised and the dimensionality of the Law determined, and reveals signifi cant "heresthetic" maneuvering in a situation of transition in which the need to maintain appearances was of vital importance.