Spain’s prime minister calls snap election after protests over housing crisis

Spanish prime minister ⁠Pedro Sánchez ‌has ​called ⁠an early ​election ​for ‌November ​29th ⁠of this ⁠year.Speculation over an early ballot started gaining momentum on Friday after two emergency housing bills presented by the government were defeated in parliament. While the minority coalition led by Sánchez has struggled to pass legislation since taking office in 2023, the latest defeat hit hard because affordable housing is a core issue for its supporters.Sánchez’s term runs until July 2027. The government has trailed in polls for months, with the conservative People’s Party and far-right Vox showing enough support to form a coalition government.The parliamentary defeat may give Sánchez and his Socialists an opening to build a campaign narrative against the right.[ How an elderly Madrid woman’s eviction became a new flashpoint in Spain’s housing ​crisisOpens in new window ]Sánchez first took power in 2018 and has never completed a term, having called early elections twice. He has spent his eight years in power navigating a succession of crises.He has failed to present a single government budget during his latest term as corruption cases involving his party or family multiplied. Over the summer, the illegal arrival of about 80,000 migrants in the Spanish exclave of Ceuta in North Africa fuelled a new wave of social discontent.Protesters shout slogans along Gran Via street during a demonstration against the housing crisis on the weekend. Photograph: Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images Protesters hold a banner reading "towards the general strike" along Gran Via street during a demonstration against the housing crisis in Madrid, Spain. Photograph: Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images The political crisis over housing started last month with the eviction of an 87-year-old woman with a disability, prompting street demonstrations and a protest camp in central Madrid. Mass protests against housing costs took place in Madrid and elsewhere Saturday. – Bloomberg