Pedro Sánchez announced on Monday, Oct. 5, an early general election for Sunday, Nov. 29. An extraordinary Council of Ministers approved the dissolution of the Cortes Generales. The term was due to end in July 2027. The trigger was the defeat in Congress, on Friday, Oct. 2, of the two housing decrees born after the eviction of Maricarmen Abascal, 87: the first fell by 172 votes to 178 with the no of Junts, the PP and Vox. Sánchez said he needs a “much broader progressive majority.” The campaign would begin on Nov. 13. Feijóo welcomed the early vote and Podemos offered Sumar primaries on Oct. 14 and 15.
With the Cortes dissolved, all bills in progress lapse, from smaller class sizes to the ban on social media for under-16s, according to El País. The Government is a caretaker from the election onward and with limited room. And housing, the problem that brought down the term, becomes the axis of the campaign.
If you want to vote by post, request it as soon as the window opens. If you are a tenant, watch for changes to the decrees: El Mundo describes an exchange of burofaxes (registered letters) between landlords and tenants who do not know which rule applies.
For the PSOE, housing is an issue on which it can mobilize its voters and ask for a majority that does not depend on Junts.
For the PP and Vox, the early vote confirms that the term was exhausted; Feijóo calls for a “profound change” and promises not to raise taxes.
Sánchez turns housing into a plebiscite. The first test is not Nov. 29 but Tuesday: if the Government approves the decrees again for the Permanent Deputation, the argument will move from apartments to the Constitution. It will also be worth watching whether the left arrives united before the coalition deadline.
RTVE, El País, El Mundo, La Vanguardia, Expansión, Europa Press, ABC · Oct. 2–5, 2026
Sánchez dissolves the Cortes and calls a general election for Nov. 29
Three days after losing both of his housing decrees in Congress, the prime minister brings the vote forward by about eight months. He wants a “much broader progressive majority.” The PP welcomes the news and the left negotiates against the clock.
Pedro Sánchez appeared at La Moncloa first thing Monday and announced what had been in the air for days: an early general election on Sunday, Nov. 29. An extraordinary Council of Ministers approved the dissolution of the Cortes Generales. The term would have ended naturally in July 2027. “The time has come to decide what future you want,” he said, as reported by RTVE. He added that he needs “a much broader progressive majority” to keep governing, according to El País.
The trigger was the vote on Friday, Oct. 2. Congress struck down the two housing decrees the Government had approved after the protests over the eviction in Madrid of Maricarmen Abascal, 87. The first fell by 172 votes in favor and 178 against. Junts, the PP and Vox voted no. Junts held to its rejection even though Housing Minister Isabel Rodríguez offered to process the texts as a government bill.
The calendar is short. The electoral law sets 54 days between publication of the decree calling the election and the vote. The campaign would begin on Nov. 13 and the day of reflection would be Nov. 28, according to the calendar circulated by El País and La Vanguardia. Anyone who wants postal voting will have to request it in the coming weeks.
Alberto Núñez Feijóo welcomed the announcement with a “Finally!”, according to El Mundo. He promised a “profound change” and said he will not raise taxes. Isabel Díaz Ayuso asked voters not to use postal voting and spoke of a risk of “ballot rigging,” an accusation without evidence that the PSOE called undemocratic. Junts accused Sánchez of using “people’s pain” to cover up corruption. On the left, Podemos offered Sumar open primaries on Oct. 14 and 15 as a condition for running together.
The Government has not given up on housing. El País and Expansión report that the Council of Ministers will approve on Tuesday decrees similar to those that fell, so that the Permanent Deputation of Congress, the body that stays standing when the chambers are dissolved, can ratify them. Several jurists consulted by El País and El Mundo doubt that the maneuver is constitutional. The stock market was not frightened: the IBEX 35 closed up 1.12%, at 19,299.7 points.
One unknown remains over the electoral roll. The Supreme Court is reviewing the Government’s appeal against the suspension that prevents those who obtained citizenship under the grandchildren’s law from voting, according to El País, El Mundo and RTVE. If the suspension stands, hundreds of thousands of new Spaniards would be left out of the polls on Nov. 29. RTVE, for its part, proposed three election debates, including a head-to-head between Sánchez and Feijóo.