ABSTRACT
Spain's turning point toward democratization occurred shortly after Franco's death in 1975. Extensive tourism and a large contingent of emigrant workers returning to Spain also had an internationalizing and liberalizing effect on the somewhat insular Spanish culture. The realities of extensive social pluralization, a King dedicated to democracy and awareness, even among authoritarian elites, that political change was necessary, culminated in a Spanish turning point toward democratization. Paradoxically, terrorists and separatists of the extreme left, aiming at the violent destabilization of Spanish society, also favored a choice of continuity. The vast majority of the Spanish population favored some form of change, indeed expected change upon Franco's death. There was a wide variety of illegal and legal political groups in Spain at the time of Franco's death. By the end of June 1977 the stage was set for the further implementation of democracy in Spain.
