Spain: Pedro Sanchez calls for early elections after failure to pass housing laws

The defeat of the Spanish Prime Minister's government in passing housing laws in Parliament added to the list of pressures exerted by political opponents on Pedro Sanchez, prompting him to once again call for early elections.

In light of the housing crisis ravaging the Spanish street, which exploded after pictures spread of an 87-year-old woman who was forcibly evicted from her home due to her inability to pay the increase in the rent value; Exhausted and still, she was transferred in a wheelchair to an ambulance. The incident entered Parliament through its broad door, and its title was the housing crisis in the country, which prompted the government of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to introduce measures to alleviate the burden of the crisis. Because it lacks a majority, the government failed to pass its proposal in Parliament.

As a result, Sanchez called on Monday (October 5, 2026) for early elections to be held on November 29. Because the country has been operating for years under the 2023 budget, the last national spending plan approved by the Sanchez government, the crisis has shown the extent of the minority government's inability to pass laws.

This is not the first time that the Spanish Prime Minister has called for this. In 2023, he previously called for early elections, following the defeat that his party suffered in the local and regional elections. Then the conservative Popular Party won, but it was unable to rule alone, and at the same time the populist "Vox" party failed to obtain a parliamentary majority.

Between the "traitor" and the "brilliant"

Three years ago, Sanchez's party came in second place. Despite this, he retained power thanks to his success in convincing regional parties to support a minority government that he headed in conjunction with the leftist Sumar coalition, in addition to short-lived support for the Catalan separatists led by Carles Puigdemont and his “Together” or “Junts” party. He is the man who sought to lead Catalonia towards independence following the 2017 referendum that was declared unconstitutional.

This particular alliance at the time attracted Sanchez to a barrage of criticism, especially when he hinted at the possibility of passing a law to amnesty Catalan separatists and proposing the Catalan language as an official language of the European Union in Brussels. At that time, angry demonstrations took place in a number of Spanish cities in protest against the plan to approve the amnesty, as it was considered “contrary” to the constitution. But in the end, Sanchez was re-elected as prime minister, and the 2024 amnesty law was passed by a narrow majority.

After this event, opinions differed about the person of Sanchez, between those who considered him a traitor and those who described him as “politically brilliant.”

Ceuta crisis

The scene today looks different from yesterday due to the scale of the immediate challenges. The Social Democratic Party suffered a crushing defeat in the regional elections in Andalusia last May, and its surroundings are haunted by multiple corruption cases. In addition to all of this, there is the crisis of the Ceuta enclave, which is worsening day by day, in which Sanchez was subjected to an unprecedented attack by the Yemeni parties in particular, considering that he works for the agenda of the neighboring country, Morocco.

At the same time, it is not unlikely that this housing crisis will give a strong impetus and increase the popularity of the current government, as the proposed measures, which were rejected by the opposition, included some of the street’s demands, including ensuring the automatic renewal of lease contracts and imposing restrictions on the eviction of tenants from the most vulnerable groups.