Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has announced an early general election for Sunday 29 November 2026, after parliament rejected his government's measures to address the housing crisis.
He made the announcement in a televised address from the Moncloa Palace on the morning of Monday 5 October, opening a new period of political confrontation in Spain.
Sánchez said he had informed the head of state and decided to convene an extraordinary cabinet meeting to dissolve parliament and call the election. He argued that Spaniards must now decide the country's future, presenting the contest as a choice between continuing his government's progressive policies and a shift to the right.
The immediate trigger was the government's parliamentary defeat on Friday 2 October. According to Spanish public broadcaster RTVE, the conservative People's Party, the far-right Vox and the Catalan party Junts voted against two housing decrees, amid strong public protests over access to decent accommodation.
The prime minister acknowledged that his government had made mistakes and had not fulfilled all its commitments. Reuters reported that he also recognised the dissatisfaction of some voters who had supported it, while insisting that renewed public backing and a stronger progressive majority were needed to carry reforms forward.
Calling an election involves political risk for Sánchez: according to Reuters, his Socialist Party is trailing in opinion polls. His government is seeking to turn the dispute over housing policy into a case for strengthening its parliamentary position.
Housing is therefore at the centre of the campaign, linking the financial pressures people face in everyday life with the question of which government can deliver workable solutions.
