Spain’s Sanchez calls snap election for November 29

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has called a snap election for November 29, after facing mounting pressure from mass protests over the country’s housing crisis.
Sanchez announced the early election in a televised speech from the Palace of Moncloa in Madrid. “The time has come for the Spanish people to decide what future they want,” he said.
The announcement came less than 72 hours after parliament rejected two housing-related decree laws. The votes failed on October 2, with the first losing 178 to 172 and the second 184 to 166 in the 350-seat chamber. The conservative People’s Party, far-right Vox and Catalan party Junts voted against.
The decrees aimed to ease the housing crisis. They included a ban on evicting vulnerable tenants until 2030, a two-year freeze on rental contracts and curbs on short-term rentals.
Protests have spread across Spain. Hundreds camped at Madrid’s Puerta del Sol, and tens of thousands marched on October 3. The tenants’ union claimed 500,000 protesters in Madrid; the government estimated 70,000.
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