Red belt (Community of Madrid)
# Red belt (Community of Madrid)

The expression red belt (Spanish: Cinturón rojo) is used to designate in the Community of Madrid, since the return to democracy in the last decades of the 20th century, the set of cities located in the southern part of the metropolitan area of the city of Madrid, characterized by their high population of workers or working class and because of their long history with mayors of the Spanish Socialist Workers Party or other left parties and coalitions such as the Communist Party of Spain or the United Left, representing a total of 21% of the population residing in the Community of Madrid, with six out of the ten most populated municipalities of the region belonging to the red belt. The name is also used to talk about the southern districts of the city of Madrid.

As of the 2010s, there was also talk in this country of a "purple belt" in reference to the emergence, with a notable implantation in the red belt, of the new Podemos party, whose color is purple instead of the traditional red of the left-wing parties.

## Municipalities of the Madrilenian «red belt»

| Municipality | Population (2021) | Current mayor | Term start | Party (2023-2027) | Parties in local government since 1979 |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Alcorcón | 170 817 (7th) | Candelaria Testa | 2023 | PSOE (Coalition) | 1979-1999; 2003-2011; 2019-current |
| Arganda del Rey | 56 386 (21st) | Alberto Escribano | 2023 | PP (Coalition) | 1979-1999 1999-2003; 2015-2023 |
| Coslada | 81 273 (15th) | Ángel Viveros | 2015 | PSOE (Coalition) | 1982-1983 1983-1999 1999-2003; 2007-2011; 2015-current |
| Fuenlabrada | 192 233 (4th) | Javier Ayala | 2018 | PSOE (Majority) | 1979-current |
| Getafe | 183 095 (6th) | Sara Hernández | 2015 | PSOE (Coalition) | 1979-2011; 2015-current |
| Leganés | 187 762 (5th) | Miguel Ángel Recuenco | 2023 | PP (Coalition) | 1979-2007; 2007-2011; 2015-2023 |
| Mejorada del Campo | 23 737 (33rd) | Jorge Capa | 2015 | PSOE (Majority) | 1978-1982 1982-1995 1995-1999 1999-2011; 2015-current |
| Móstoles | 209 639 (2nd) | Manuel Bautista | 2023 | PP (Coalition) | 1979-2003; 2015-2023 |
| Parla | 131 689 (9th) | Ramón Jurado | 2019 | PSOE (Coalition) | 1979-2015; 2019-current |
| Pinto | 53 537 (22nd) | Salomón Aguado | 2023 | PP (Coalition) | 1979-1987 1987-1995 1995-2007; 2008-2011 2015-2019 2019-2023 |
| Rivas-Vaciamadrid | 92 925 (12th) | Aída Castillejo | 2022 | IU (Coalition) | 1987-1991 1991-current |
| San Fernando de Henares | 39 313 (25th) | Francisco Javier Corpa | 2019 | PSOE (Majority) | 1979-1991 1991-1995 1995-2015 2015-2019 2019-current |
| San Martín de la Vega | 19 853 (36th) | Rafael Martínez | 2015 | PSOE (Majority) | 1979-2007; 2015-current |
| Velilla de San Antonio | 12 542 (48th) | Antonia Alcázar | 2015 | PSOE (Coalition) | 1987-2009; 2015-current |
