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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Monday called an early general election for Nov. 29 after parliament rejected housing relief measures proposed by his minority government.
Sanchez announced the decision in a televised address from La Moncloa, his official residence, after days of speculation over whether he would bring forward elections that were previously scheduled for 2027.
The move followed a major defeat in parliament Friday, when opposition parties voted down measures that included automatic renewal of tenancy contracts and restrictions on evicting vulnerable tenants.
The setback renewed questions about the survival of Sanchez’s minority coalition government, which has struggled to pass legislation and has operated for years under Spain’s 2023 budget.
Tens of thousands of protesters marched in Madrid and other Spanish cities Saturday to demand action on affordable housing.
The demonstrations followed more than a week of unrest triggered by last month’s eviction of 87-year-old pensioner Maricarmen Abascal from her Madrid apartment, where she had lived for decades.
Housing campaigners said Abascal was forced to leave after an investment company acquired the property and sought to raise her rent by 275%.
The backlash later led the property’s new owners to reach a deal allowing her to return at a low rent.
Hundreds of protesters have also occupied a tent camp in central Madrid to press for housing reforms.
Housing has become one of Spain’s most pressing political issues as supply falls short of demand and rents and home prices continue to rise.
Average rents in Spain have almost doubled over the past decade, while asking prices for homes have risen by about 90%, according to real estate website Idealista.
Sanchez’s leftist coalition had presented housing bills to parliament in an effort to respond to the crisis, but the Catalan separatist party Junts, whose support the government relies on, voted against the measures, arguing they lacked rigor.
Recent opinion polls have generally placed the main opposition conservative Popular Party ahead of Sanchez’s Socialists.
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