Pravedes Mateo Sagasta

Sagasta and Conservative leader C

As Prime Minister, Sagasta passed a law establishing universal male suffrage in Spain. This reform expanded the electorate from about 800,000 to over 4 million voters, though electoral manipulation continued through caciquismo.

Sagasta was Prime Minister when the Spanish-American War broke out after the sinking of the USS Maine. Spain lost its remaining colonies of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines, marking the end of the Spanish Empire.