Overview
- Pedro Sánchez announced the dissolution of parliament and called a snap legislative election for Sunday, 29 November after making the decision public on Monday, October 5, 2026.
- The move followed the Congress vote that rejected the government’s emergency housing decrees and comes after mass protests triggered by the eviction of 87‑year‑old Maricarmen Abascal and the erection of protest camps such as at Madrid’s Puerta del Sol.
- Sánchez framed the election as a bid to win a larger progressive majority able to enact reforms, saying his minority coalition cannot pass the changes Parliament needs to address the housing crisis.
- The prime minister is politically weakened by corruption allegations touching figures close to him and by the loss of dependable support from the Catalan party Junts, which left his governing margin thin and made regular majorities impossible.
- Polls show the conservative People’s Party (PP) leading the Socialists and project that the PP would likely need Vox’s backing to command a majority, and reports say the government may try to reissue housing measures via the Council of Ministers and seek approval from the permanent deputation while Congress is dissolved.