Sánchez calls Spain election after housing measures defeated
The 29 November vote follows parliament’s rejection of two housing decrees and mounting calls for stronger tenant protections.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has called an early general election for 29 November, after parliament rejected two government decrees intended to address the housing crisis. The vote brings forward an election that was not due until 2027 at the latest.
Sánchez said in a televised address that he needed a broader progressive majority to advance reforms. His Socialist party governs with the Sumar alliance but lacks a parliamentary majority.
The parliamentary defeat came amid protests for stronger tenant protections. The eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal from her Madrid home, after a sharp rent increase, became a focus of public anger. Her lawyer has said she will be able to return home.
The rejected decrees included proposals to suspend some evictions, extend rental leases and regulate tourist apartments and property purchases. Opponents argued that intervention in the rental market could reduce supply and push up prices.
Housing is one of several pressures facing Sánchez’s government, alongside cost-of-living and immigration issues and corruption scandals involving members of his party and family. The BBC reported that opinion polls suggested conservatives could emerge as the largest party, though forming a government may require support from the Vox party.
