Ramírez assumes the acting Presidency of Ceuta as of October 4

The first vice president of the Government of Ceuta and counselor for Environment, Urban Services, and Housing, Alejandro Ramírez Hurtado, assumes the acting Presidency of the Autonomous City from October 4, at 1:30 p.m., until the return of the titular president. The decision was made by the president himself, Juan Jesús Vivas Lara, via a decree issued using the powers granted by Article 14 of Organic Law 1/1995, of March 13, of the Statute of Autonomy of Ceuta. The appointment is published in the Official Gazette of the Autonomous City of Ceuta (BOCCE) No. 6,659, of October 9, 2026, within the AUTHORITIES AND PERSONNEL section, as provision 687, page 3634.

A decree with immediate effects

The decree is based on Article 5.5 of the Regulations of the Government and Administration Services of the Autonomous City of Ceuta and consists of three sections: the designation of the acting president, the effectiveness of the act from its own date, and its publication in the official gazette. The text justifies the measure due to the absence of the City’s titular head starting at 1:30 p.m. on October 4, without setting a return date.

The document appears digitally signed by Juan Jesús Vivas Lara, president, dated October 3, 2026, and incorporated into the Registry of Decrees and Resolutions. The signature of the general secretary, María Dolores Pastilla Gómez, is dated October 5, 2026.

Third substitution in less than a month

The designation of Ramírez Hurtado as acting president has occurred regularly over the last month, always using the same formula and the same recipient:

• September 14, 2026, from 09:30 a.m. (BOCCE No. 6,653, of September 18).
• September 22, 2026, from 3:15 p.m. (BOCCE No. 6,655, of September 25).
• October 4, 2026, from 1:30 p.m. (BOCCE No. 6,659, of October 9).

In all three cases, the decree is limited to designating the first vice president “until my return,” without a determined timeframe, and orders its publication in the BOCCE.

The role accompanying the substitution

Alejandro Ramírez Hurtado holds the First Vice Presidency of the Government alongside the Counseling for Environment, Urban Services, and Housing, the department from which he has signed his own provisions in recent weeks, such as the decree that establishes the huntable species and suspends the eligible periods for small game hunting for the 2026-2027 season, published in BOCCE No. 6,656, of September 29, 2026.

The acting Presidency does not alter the ownership of competencies nor the structure of the Government: it is activated only during the absences of the president and expires upon his return, as stated in the decree itself by noting that it will take effect from its date.

Impact

For citizens and for the departments of the regional Administration, the decree implies that, as of October 4, the acts and resolutions corresponding to the Presidency of the City are signed by Alejandro Ramírez Hurtado, with full legal validity for the duration of the holder’s absence. Publication in the BOCCE guarantees the official publicity of the temporary change and provides legal certainty to the procedures processed during this period.

Source: Official Gazette of the Autonomous City of Ceuta (BOCCE), no. 6,659, of October 9, 2026, section AUTHORITIES AND PERSONNEL, page 3634 (official reference: provision 687).