Real Madrid will hold presidential elections on June 7, in a contest that will once again have more than one candidate after almost two decades. The club's electoral board confirmed this Tuesday that Florentino Pérez and businessman Enrique Riquelme were officially admitted to compete for the presidency and the Board of Directors of the institution.

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Voting will take place in the Basketball Pavilion of Real Madrid City between 9:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. uninterruptedly, as reported by the club in a statement issued by the electoral body.

The confirmation of the process marks an unusual event within Madrid institutional life. Since Florentino Pérez's return to office in 2009, no candidate had formally competed against the current president. The last election with several candidates occurred in 2006, when Ramón Calderón surpassed Juan Palacios with 29.8% of the votes.

Enrique Riquelme's presence in the presidential race began to gain strength last weekend. The president of Cox Energy went to the Santiago Bernabéu stadium hours before Real Madrid's last match of the season, in a context marked by the closing of a season without titles for the white team.

Dressed in a club shirt and scarf, Riquelme arrived at the venue approximately half an hour before the game and generated excitement among fans who came to talk to him at the entrances to the stadium.

An unprecedented electoral scenario since 2006

The businessman's public appearance occurred after delivering the documentation required to formalize his candidacy in Valdebebas. The electoral board subsequently reviewed the files and confirmed that both the list headed by Florentino Pérez and that of Enrique Riquelme meet the requirements established in the club's statutes.

"Today is an important day for Real Madrid because there will be elections soon, after 20 years without voting. We have 15 days to talk about the campaign, the candidacy...", Riquelme declared before the media present near the Bernabéu.

The call returns the Madrid club to a competitive electoral scenario that has not occurred for almost twenty years. During that time, Florentino Pérez had remained at the head of the institution without opposition in the different electoral processes.

The official announcement also establishes the start of a brief campaign period before voting day. During the coming weeks, both candidates will be able to present their proposals to the delegate members and the rest of the club members authorized to participate in the elections.

The day of June 7 will define who will lead the presidency of Real Madrid in a new institutional stage. The process comes at a time of special attention for the club, both due to the recent sporting situation and the return of a direct electoral dispute for the top position of the entity.