Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has called a snap general election for 29 November following parliamentary defeats on emergency legislation designed to resolve the country`s escalating housing crisis. The announcement on Monday followed the rejection of two pivotal decree laws introduced by his minority administration to shield tenants from soaring rental rates. The move comes as public anger over property costs threatens institutional stability, according to Reuters and The Guardian.
The parliamentary defeat triggered an immediate political impasse.
In a televised address to the nation, Sánchez stated that advancing structural reforms required a broader progressive majority capable of overcoming resistance from entrenched economic interests. While defending his legislative agenda, the prime minister conceded that administrative shortcomings remained, acknowledging unresolved pressures surrounding public services, inequality, and housing access. Sánchez’s coalition, comprising his Socialist Party and junior partner Sumar, relies on fragmented regional alliances and lacks an absolute working majority in parliament. Spain was not legally mandated to hold a general election until the summer of 2027.
The political decision follows widespread street unrest across multiple metropolitan centres. Nationwide scrutiny intensified after the forced eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal from her Madrid apartment on 23 September, where she had resided for over seven decades. Taking advantage of legal loopholes, her landlord raised monthly rent from 500 euros to 2,650 euros, before settling at 1,650 euros, an amount that still exceeded her monthly pension by 300 euros. Public outrage mounted after she had to be removed on a stretcher and admitted to a medical facility, prompting tens of thousands of citizens to march through Madrid, Valencia, and Barcelona on Saturday.
In an effort to quell public discontent, the coalition had proposed two decree measures. The first package included a freeze on evicting vulnerable families until 2030, a mandatory two-year extension on expiring rental contracts, higher municipal tax brackets on tourist accommodation, and stringent ownership caps on institutional investment entities known as vulture funds. The second decree proposed automatic lease renewals, a principal demand put forward by grassroots tenant organisations. However, conservative and regional factions united against both texts, with People`s Party lawmaker Juan Bravo arguing in debate that market intervention reduces available rental supply rather than lowering consumer costs.
Opposition leaders welcomed the dissolution of parliament. Alberto Núñez Feijóo, head of the conservative People`s Party, characterised the upcoming vote as a critical crossroads between systemic decline and institutional renewal. Polling benchmarks indicate that while the conservatives are positioned to secure the highest seat share, securing a functional parliamentary majority may require formal coalition negotiations with the right-wing Vox party.
