PM Sánchez launches campaign ahead of Spain’s elections — France 24

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has launched an election campaign ahead of early parliamentary elections scheduled for November 29. The vote will take place amid protests over the housing crisis, which have increased pressure on the left-wing coalition government.

As France 24 reports, the minority government was unable to pass its proposed emergency housing measures through parliament. Sánchez then called early elections instead of the regular vote that had been planned for 2027.

Housing at the center of the campaign

Protests across the country intensified after the eviction of 87-year-old Madrid pensioner Maricarmen Abascal, who became a symbol of Spain’s chronic housing crisis. She died in hospital on Wednesday.

At a rally in the city of Dos Hermanas near Seville, Sánchez promised to strengthen legislation to protect tenants from real estate market speculation if his party wins an absolute majority. He said that Abascal and the activists who spoke in her support had “paved the way” for the struggle for the right to housing.

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Dos Hermanas is a historic socialist stronghold. It was there that Sánchez began his campaign ahead of the 2023 elections, after which he retained his post, although the conservative People’s Party won more seats in parliament.

Opposition promises change

People’s Party leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo, who leads in most polls, also gathered supporters in Madrid. On Sunday, he said Spain needs a future and that Sánchez “must remain in the past,” promising “total change.”

Feijóo criticizes the government, including over the situation in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in North Africa. At the end of July, more than 70,000 migrants arrived there from neighboring Morocco, thousands of whom remained for months in chaotic conditions.

At the same time, polls indicate that the People’s Party may lack the votes for a majority on its own. In such a scenario, the far-right Vox party, the third-largest force in parliament, could play a key role in possible coalition talks. Trade unions have also announced a general strike for November 11 over housing and wage issues.