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Ongoing story / Spain

Spain's housing crisis and Pedro Sánchez's snap election

Overview · reviewed November 12, 2026

Spain's housing crisis boiled over in the fall of 2026 after the eviction of an 87-year-old woman, Maricarmen, from her Madrid apartment set off protests across the country.[1] After rejected the government's emergency housing measures, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called a for November 29.[2]

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After rejected the government's emergency housing measures, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called a for November 29.[2]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2026-09-21 (UTC): 3%, 15 of 479 tracked outlets (3 left, 11 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-09-28 (UTC): 3%, 13 of 476 tracked outlets (5 left, 6 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-10-05 (UTC): 7%, 33 of 479 tracked outlets (8 left, 17 center, 8 right)Week of 2026-10-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-02 (UTC): under 1%, 1 of 471 tracked outlets (0 left, 0 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-11-09 (UTC): 5%, 24 of 473 tracked outlets (6 left, 15 center, 3 right), so far

LeftCenterRightLighter bar: this week so far

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 6 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (5 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Nov 9, 2026 (so far)615324 of 4735%
Nov 2, 20260011 of 471under 1%
Oct 5, 2026817833 of 4797%
Sep 28, 202656213 of 4763%
Sep 21, 2026311115 of 4793%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Nov 12, 2026 · first reported · Headline from WTOP Washington DC

    Spain’s Sánchez faces political test as deadly train crash casts shadow over election campaign

Background

The protests began in late September 2026. Maricarmen was evicted from the Madrid apartment where she had lived for more than 70 years, and protesters camped overnight in Madrid's Puerta del Sol.[1] She later accepted a deal to return home.[3] Spain's average rent has nearly doubled in a decade, and more than a quarter of renters spend 40% of their income on housing.[4]

Read the full background (2 more paragraphs)

The government's response stalled in parliament. Sánchez's Socialist-led coalition approved measures that included extending a ban on evictions of vulnerable people,[5] but parliament rejected two of them.[6] Tens of thousands marched in more than 50 protests across Spain.[7] In early October, Sánchez called early elections for November.[2] After a night of violent protests in Barcelona, his government approved urgent housing measures.[8]

The death of Maricarmen Abascal, the 87-year-old evicted pensioner who had become the face of the protests, reenergized the campaign against evictions.[9] In November, millions of workers joined Spain's first general strike in 14 years over housing and the cost of living,[10] and the government then approved housing measures, including protections against evictions, a freeze on rent increases and a tax on tourist apartments, whose survival may depend on the election.[11]

Supporting stories (11)
  1. 87-year-old's eviction becomes a rallying cry for protest of Spain's housing crisis
  2. Spain's prime minister calls snap election aiming to seize momentum over housing crisis
  3. An 87-year-old woman whose eviction sparked protests is Spain is returning home, lawyer says
  4. Spain’s lefty government evicted an 87-year-old woman from her home of 70 years and thousands of protesters took the streets
  5. Spain agrees to measures to fix housing crisis, ban eviction
  6. Spain's parliament rejects housing bill as protests continue
  7. Tens of thousands in Spain take to streets to protest housing crisis
  8. Spain’s government to approve urgent housing measures after a night of unrest in Barcelona
  9. Death of 87-year-old Maricarmen is reenergizing Spain's protests to stop evictions
  10. Millions of Spaniards stage first general strike in 14 years as anger rages over housing
  11. Spain approves housing measures after huge protests. Their duration may depend on the election

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 15 recorded updates

November 2026

  1. Spain’s Sánchez faces political test as deadly train crash casts shadow over election campaignHeadline from WTOP Washington DC · 3 outlets
  2. Spain approves housing measures after huge protests. Their duration may depend on the electionHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 3 outlets
  3. Millions of Spaniards stage first general strike in 14 years as anger rages over housingHeadline from KTVZ Bend · 31 outlets

October 2026

  1. What to know about Pedro Sánchez's bid to turn Spain's housing crunch into an electoral victoryHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 1 outlet
  2. Spain’s government to approve urgent housing measures after a night of unrest in BarcelonaHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 2 outlets
  3. Death of 87-year-old Maricarmen is reenergizing Spain's protests to stop evictionsHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 21 outlets
  4. Spain’s lefty government evicted an 87-year-old woman from her home of 70 years and thousands of protesters took the streetsHeadline from Fortune · 2 outlets
  5. What to know about Spain’s housing protests sparked by the eviction of the 87-year-old MaricarmenHeadline from WTOP Washington DC · 3 outlets
  6. Tens of thousands in Spain take to streets to protest housing crisisHeadline from UPI · 3 outlets
  7. Spain's prime minister calls snap election aiming to seize momentum over housing crisisHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 34 outlets

September 2026

  1. Spain's parliament rejects housing bill as protests continueHeadline from Deutsche Welle · 8 outlets
  2. Spain agrees to measures to fix housing crisis, ban evictionHeadline from Deutsche Welle · 5 outlets
  3. Spanish housing protests spread as government prepares its responseHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 2 outlets
  4. 87-year-old's eviction becomes a rallying cry for protest of Spain's housing crisisHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 20 outlets
  5. An 87-year-old woman whose eviction sparked protests is Spain is returning home, lawyer saysHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 11 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →