Spain’s Sánchez weighs calling snap election as housing defeat looms

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is considering calling a snap election if proposed housing reforms do not pass in a crucial parliamentary session on Friday, according to high-ranking government officials. The decrees aim to curb speculative practices, extend eviction protections for vulnerable tenants until 2030, and automatically renew existing rental contracts, following nationwide protests following an 87-year-old woman's eviction from the apartment she had lived in since 1956.

Despite initial support, the Catalan separatist Junts party announced it would oppose the measures, ensuring their defeat. Sánchez defiantly stated that he would not withdraw the decrees, framing the parliamentary vote as a defining moment. Anonymous government sources told El País that Sánchez was leaning toward calling an early election if the decrees fail.

Spain's legislative term is set to end next summer, and Sánchez may seize the opportunity to call a snap election, capitalizing on popular discontent and casting opponents as obstacles to addressing the crisis. The center-right People's Party currently leads in polls, with 34% support, while Vox follows at 18%. Both parties oppose measures challenging landlords' rights and favor deregulation and incentives for private owners.

The request for the vote to be conducted by a show of hands, revealing lawmakers' positions publicly, comes at the request of Sánchez's Socialist Party and far-left Sumar. Demonstrations over the housing crisis have been ongoing nationwide, with protests in major cities. Spanish Tenants' Union is leading the protests, calling for a general strike and occupying Madrid's central Puerta del Sol until demands are met. The Spanish government has declined a request to clear the square.