Spain’s Sanchez Faces Uphill Battle as Snap Election Nears Amid Housing Anger

Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is struggling to win back disillusioned left-wing voters before the snap general election on 29 November, with polls showing his Socialists have made almost no ground since he called the vote. When Sánchez dissolved parliament last month, he bet housing anger and fear of the far right would rally progressive voters behind him. Instead, many of those voters blame his own government for failing to tackle the housing crisis, and some are turning to smaller parties — or considering not voting at all.

FAKTA

• Election day: 29 November 2026
• Socialist support: 26–29%, almost unchanged since the vote was called
• General strike: 11 November — unions said over three million took part
• Average rent: €1,176 a month, about 98.7% of a young person’s average salary
• Housing shortage: about 750,000 homes, set to pass one million by 2028
• Trigger: the September eviction of Maricarmen Abascal, 87, who later died

Housing dominates the campaign

Housing has become the defining issue of the campaign. The September eviction of Maricarmen Abascal, 87, from the Madrid home where she had lived for 70 years, and her death soon afterwards, set off weeks of protests. The anger culminated on 11 November in Spain’s first general strike in 14 years, backed by the two largest unions and tenants’ associations. It targeted living conditions and what protesters see as the authorities’ failure to guarantee housing.

Rents have risen 22.9% over the past decade, according to Spain’s National Institute of Statistics, and the central bank estimates a shortage of about 750,000 homes. Average rent of €1,176 is almost a young person’s entire average salary. Sánchez tried to answer the crisis with rent controls and tenant protections, but parliament rejected the decree on 2 October — the defeat that led him to dissolve the Cortes and call the snap election.

A divided left

The bigger problem for Sánchez is that the protest movement has moved beyond his party. Talks to unite the left into a common platform collapsed last month, and smaller parties are competing for the same voters. Podemos, which once polled above 25%, now stands at 1.9% and has refused to join a new Broad Front alliance. Student activists and housing campaigners say the Socialists have disappointed progressive voters; the Tenants Union argues voting alone cannot deliver change.

Sánchez has warned voters that an alliance between the conservative People’s Party and the far-right Vox party could roll back social rights. His slogan, “all on red”, urges tactical voting in closely contested provinces. Polling experts say undecided voters could still shift the result, and some note Vox is also attracting dissatisfied voters from the left.

What happens next

Without a shift in the next two weeks, a People’s Party–Vox alliance is seen as the most likely next government. But the campaign is still open, and the final pitches could yet move undecided voters. For background, see our report on Spain’s first general strike in 14 years over the housing crisis.