Economy, Politics & Power in Gran Canaria — The Complete Guide

This guide is updated monthly. Last update: 25 March 2026

An Economy Without Alternatives: Why the Canaries Depend on Tourism

The economy of the Canary Islands is 86.83 per cent services — and the lion's share of that is tourism. In 2024 the sector's contribution to regional GDP hit a record 36.8 per cent: 21.4 billion euros flowed directly and indirectly from tourism into the Canarian economy. Nearly 40 per cent of all jobs on the islands are tourism-dependent. Tourism-related tax revenue covered 39.7 per cent of all regional taxes in 2023 — enough to fund almost the entire public health system.

Agriculture, once the islands' economic backbone, now accounts for just 1.77 per cent of GDP. The plátano (Canarian banana), tomatoes, cucumbers and flowers are the remaining exports. The banana represents about 20 per cent of total agricultural value and holds cultural significance, yet it is marginal in the big picture. Industrial production barely registers at 5.57 per cent of GDP — there are no raw materials, no manufacturing base worth mentioning and no continental hinterland. The export coverage rate sits at a meagre 17.9 per cent: the islands import nearly six times more than they export.

In 2024, roughly 18 million tourists visited the Canary Islands — against a resident population of 2.26 million. Despite this, unemployment stood at 13.5 per cent and 33.8 per cent of the population was at risk of poverty or social exclusion. Tourism creates jobs, but not enough, and not well-paid enough, to carry everyone. For Gran Canaria — especially the south around Maspalomas, Playa del Inglés and Meloneras — this dependency is existential: without tourism, the entire economic foundation collapses.

Who Governs the Canaries: The Political Map, Island by Island

Canarian politics is complex. Beyond the regional government (Gobierno de Canarias), each of the seven inhabited islands has its own Cabildo — an island government with substantial autonomy and its own budget. Add municipal councils (Ayuntamientos) and the regional parliament, and you get a fragmented system where regional, insular and local interests constantly collide.

Since July 2023, Fernando Clavijo of Coalición Canaria (CC) has served as President of the Canary Islands — his second term (the first being 2015–2019). His coalition partner is the conservative Partido Popular (PP) under Vice President Manuel Domínguez, supported by the Agrupación Herreña Independiente (AHI) from El Hierro. CC holds six ministries, PP five and AHI one.

The Canarian party landscape at a glance:

Gran Canaria: Antonio Morales (Nueva Canarias, Centre-Left). In office since 2015, now in his third term. Coalition NC + PSOE. Gran Canaria is the only major island not controlled by CC or PP — the Cabildo under Morales pursues an "Eco-Island" agenda with projects like the Salto de Chira pumped-storage power plant.

Tenerife: Rosa Dávila (Coalición Canaria, Centre-Right). First woman to lead the Tenerife Cabildo. CC + PP coalition, after PSOE predecessor Pedro Martín resigned before a no-confidence vote could proceed.

Fuerteventura: Coalición Canaria (Centre-Right), coalition CC + PSOE — one of the few institutions where CC does not partner with PP. Lanzarote: Coalición Canaria (Centre-Right), CC + PP coalition. La Palma: Coalición Canaria (Centre-Right), absolute majority. La Gomera: Agrupación Socialista Gomera (Centre-Left), Casimiro Curbelo, absolute majority. El Hierro: PSOE (Centre-Left), following a no-confidence motion against AHI.

The political reality: Coalición Canaria controls the regional government plus three to four Cabildo presidencies. Nueva Canarias holds Gran Canaria. The Canaries are not a monolithic political block but a patchwork of insular interests, where each island has its own political dynamics.

The Anti-Tourism Movement: "Canarias tiene un límite"

On 20 April 2024, the largest protest demonstrations in Canarian history took place. Under the slogan "Canarias tiene un límite" (The Canaries have a limit), approximately 200,000 people took to the streets across all islands — an unprecedented mobilisation for an archipelago of 2.26 million residents.

The movement demands a real tourism tax (ecotasa), a moratorium on new hotels and holiday lets, legislation restricting property purchases by non-residents (Ley de Residencia), a halt to mega-projects and protection of natural spaces. In October 2024, further protests followed in the tourist centres themselves — in Maspalomas, Playa de Las Américas, Corralejo and Puerto del Carmen. In May 2025, mass demonstrations resumed under the slogan "Canarias dice basta" (The Canaries say enough).

The Clavijo government rejected all core demands: no ecotasa, no moratorium, and the holiday-rental legislation passed was deemed inadequate by experts. President Clavijo argued the Canaries are dependent on tourism and cannot afford to curtail their primary revenue source — a position that is factually hard to refute given the numbers.

The movement stresses it is not against tourists but against a system that exploits the islands without giving enough back to residents. Its roots lie in the environmental struggles of the 1990s (Salvar Veneguera, opposition to the Puerto de Granadilla) and it connects ecological, social and economic demands. Support is broad: environmental groups, tenants' associations, artists and local influencers. For visitors to Gran Canaria, the debate is impossible to ignore — and an essential context for understanding the social mood on the islands.

The Business Dynasties: Who Really Pulls the Strings

Beneath the political surface lies an economic structure dominated by a handful of family dynasties. These groups control hotels, construction, supermarkets, airlines and increasingly infrastructure such as water and energy.

Grupo Lopesan (Eustasio López): The wealthiest person in the Canaries. Net worth estimated by Forbes at between 880 million and 1.3 billion euros. The empire began in construction and grew into a hotel conglomerate with five-star properties in southern Gran Canaria (Costa Meloneras), Fuerteventura, Thailand and the Dominican Republic. Plus golf courses, shopping centres, agriculture, renewables and more than 4,000 employees. Currently: the 85-million-euro deal for the Taurito hotels.

Grupo Satocan (Juan Miguel Sanjuán): 280 million euros in assets. Started by building the port of Puerto de Mogán and diversified into property, tourism, energy and agri-food. Held a seat on the board of Sacyr. Together with Martinón and Domingo Alonso, Satocan acquired 45 per cent of Canaragua in 2025 — the company controlling water supply across Tenerife, La Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro.

Grupo Martinón (Invercan Grumasa): 210 million euros. International hotels (Caribbean, Mexico, Aruba), food industry, construction, energy. Founder Enrique Martinón Armas was historically a close ally of Cuba's Castro regime — a connection that frayed after Castro's death. In 2025, Martinón lost the legal battle against Lopesan over the Taurito hotels.

Other key figures: The Del Castillo family (€220m, controls inter-island airline Binter), the Domínguez Santana brothers (€400m, DinoSol/Hiperdino — the Canaries' supermarket chain), Wolfgang Kiessling (€370m, Loro Parque, Siam Park — plans a second Siam Park on Gran Canaria), and Grupo Domingo Alonso (car dealerships and technology).

These business elites are organised in the Círculo de Empresarios de Gran Canaria, an informal but powerful circle. Lopesan, Satocan, Martinón, Del Castillo, Domingo Alonso — all are members. In 2022, eleven of fifteen participating companies bought their way into the Cámara de Comercio de Gran Canaria, which administers hundreds of millions in public subsidies. The boundary between economic and political power on the Canaries is fluid.

Energy Transition and Diversification: Is There a Future Beyond Tourism?

The Cabildo of Gran Canaria under Antonio Morales has promoted the "Eco-Island" concept for years. In 2025, 25.95 per cent of Gran Canaria's electricity came from renewable sources, well above the Canarian average. The Salto de Chira pumped-storage plant (€320m investment) is under construction and aims to solve the storage problem of isolated island grids. Target for 2030: 58.2 per cent renewable.

The Canarian tax system offers significant corporate incentives through the REF (Régimen Económico y Fiscal) and the ZEC (Zona Especial Canaria) — tools designed to attract non-tourism businesses. The Port of Las Palmas positions itself as a logistics hub between Europe, Africa and the Americas. Tech start-ups, film and TV productions, and the growing digital nomad community bring new economic impulses.

Yet every diversification effort fights against the gravitational pull of tourism. As long as hotels and holiday lets generate faster and easier returns than tech or industry, the status quo remains attractive. The question is not whether the Canaries should diversify, but whether they will do so in time — before overtourism, climate change or the next external shock (as the 2020 pandemic demonstrated) exposes the vulnerability of this model once again.

What This Means for Visitors and Residents

For tourists on Gran Canaria, the economic and political situation is not abstract. It explains why fuel prices on the islands work differently, why housing is catastrophic for locals, why there are demonstrations and why new hotels keep being built despite the protests. For expats and prospective residents, it explains the tax advantages they can access, but also the social tensions they should expect.

The Canary Islands are no contradiction-free paradise. They are a fascinating laboratory where European periphery, tourism monoculture, island identity and global capitalism collide. Anyone who truly wants to understand Gran Canaria needs to know not just the beaches and dunes but this story too — the story of money, power and the question of who the islands really belong to.

Read more: Gran Canaria: 26% Electricity from Renewable Sources · Fuel Prices in the Canaries: What the Iran Conflict Changes · Martinón vs. Lopesan: €85 Million Battle for Taurito Hotels · EU Subsidies for Airlines: Why Flights to the Canaries Stay Cheap · Servatur Expands: New Hotel Empire in the South · Buying Property as a Foreigner in Gran Canaria · Siam Park Gran Canaria: Opening, Costs, Controversies · Social Housing in Gran Canaria: An Island in Crisis · Storm Therese: Aftermath and Lessons · Tourism in Gran Canaria — The Complete Guide · Safety in Gran Canaria — The Complete Guide · Expat & Digital Nomad Guide Gran Canaria

Gran Canaria economy · Canary Islands politics · Coalición Canaria · Nueva Canarias · tourism dependency · anti-tourism protests · Canarias tiene un límite · Lopesan · Satocan · Martinón · Cabildo Gran Canaria · Maspalomas · Playa del Inglés · Meloneras · renewable energy Canaries