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The aim of this work is to point out the effects of the decentralization process to the political careers of Spain’s regional elites. First of all, the article analyzes the trajectories of the Presidents of the Autonomous Communities in Spain paying attention to the previous stages in which they had tenure. Then, the paper discusses which are the dominant career paths (national or local) and whether are there any differences depending on the level of decentralization of the region or the ideology of the political party. The data analysis shows the existence of different career paths, in which local and national experience have a marked tendency to dissociation and towards the creation of different cursus honorum. In this context, the consolidation of regional institutions seems to contribute to the development of differentiated political career paths for the regional leaders.