Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced in a televised address Monday that Spain will hold snap general elections on Nov. 29, well ahead of the August 2027 deadline. The decision follows parliament's rejection last Friday of two emergency housing decrees — defeated by 178–172 and 184–166 votes after right-wing opposition joined forces with Catalan separatist party Junts to scuttle eviction and speculation curbs.
Housing affordability has become Spain's defining political crisis. Tens of thousands marched in Madrid and other cities on Saturday over housing costs, following outrage over the televised eviction of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid last month. A tent-city protest has occupied central Madrid for more than a week.
"The time has come, therefore, for the Spanish people to decide what future you want for yourselves and for your country," Sánchez told Spaniards, arguing that a broader progressive coalition would give Spain the strength to tackle its biggest issues.
The gamble is steep: opinion polls currently put the conservative People's Party ahead of Sánchez's Socialists, and a PP–Vox coalition victory would bring a far-right party into Spain's central government for the first time since the return of democracy.
