Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez confirmed on Monday morning that his government will call an early general election for November 29th, amid nationwide discontent against the recent parliamentary rejection of key housing crisis measures.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez made the announcement during a televised speech on Monday, just days after parliament rejected housing crisis relief measures proposed by his government.
The defeat in parliament on Friday was another political setback for the Socialist premier, renewing questions over whether his minority government can survive until the next scheduled general election in 2027.
Sánchez, in office since 2018, made the address at 9:00 am (0800 GMT) from La Moncloa, his official residence.
Spain’s next general election was originally scheduled for August 2027, meaning that Spaniards will head to the ballot box around nine months ahead of time.
Tens of thousands of protesters marched in Madrid and other cities in Spain on Saturday to demand affordable housing.
READ MORE: Spain’s government dealt huge blow as MPs reject housing crisis laws
His government’s proposed measures, which included automatic renewal of tenancy contracts and restrictions on evicting vulnerable tenants, were voted down by opposition parties in Spain’s parliament.
The defeat infuriated those protesting the country’s increasingly expensive housing market and underscored the difficulties his minority coalition government faces in passing legislation.
“I know that the majority of society is dissatisfied to see their interests trampled on in parliament by a few. There are still many goals to achieve. More to do, we need to renew and broaden the support of people,” Sánchez said during the televised appearance, in order “to secure a much broader, progressive majority in parliament”.
Spain has been operating under its 2023 budget, the last national spending plan passed by Sanchez’s government, for several years.
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The demonstrations extended a crisis that has gone on for more than a week, triggered by the eviction last month of a pensioner, 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal, from her Madrid flat where she had lived for decades.
Hundreds of protesters have been occupying a tent city set up a week ago in the heart of Madrid to press for reforms.
Recent opinion polls have generally placed the main opposition conservative Popular Party (PP) ahead of the Socialists.
With additional reporting by The Local Spain’s editor Alex Dunham
