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Spain Calls Snap Election for November 29, 2026

By Drooid · Oct 8, 2026, 6:09 AM UTC · How we work

Center

Parliament Rejects Eviction Decrees

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called a snap general election for 29 November 2026.
Polls on 5 October gave the People’s Party 34 % support, the Socialist Party 26 %, and a PP-Vox coalition could command a majority.
Parliament rejected two housing decrees on 2 October (approved 29 September) after protests over Maricarmen Abascal’s eviction.
The decrees would have extended eviction protection for vulnerable tenants until 2030.

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Rent Hikes Trigger Protests

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced a snap general election for 29 November 2026.
The election was triggered after right-wing parties blocked emergency housing measures, sparking nationwide protests over soaring rents and evictions.
Average Spanish rent has nearly doubled in a decade, while social-owned rentals stay under 2 %.
The eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal, after a €2,650 rent hike, sparked tent camps nationwide.

History

Historical Context

The 2011 snap election on 20 November, called by Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero amid the Great Recession and a collapsing property market, produced the worst defeat for the PSOE (28.7% vote) and gave the People’s Party an absolute majority of 186 seats. That precedent of economic crisis prompting early polls informs today’s debates over housing-related unrest and calls for new elections.

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Parliament Rejects Eviction Decrees

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called a snap general election for 29 November 2026.
Polls on 5 October gave the People’s Party 34 % support, the Socialist Party 26 %, and a PP-Vox coalition could command a majority.
Parliament rejected two housing decrees on 2 October (approved 29 September) after protests over Maricarmen Abascal’s eviction.
The decrees would have extended eviction protection for vulnerable tenants until 2030.

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