Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez suffered a major setback after lawmakers rejected his proposed measures aimed at easing the country’s escalating housing crisis. The vote, held this week in Madrid, underscores the political challenges facing Sánchez’s minority left-wing government and raises the prospect of early national elections.

The legislation sought to address public outrage over soaring rents and evictions, which intensified following the high-profile eviction of an 87-year-old woman, Maricarmen Abascal, from her Madrid apartment. Her eviction, due to a rent increase after the expiration of a longstanding rent cap, sparked widespread protests and a demonstration camp in the capital’s center.

The government’s housing bill included provisions to bar evictions until 2030 and to prohibit real estate investors, described by officials as “vulture funds,” from purchasing residential properties. These measures aimed to protect vulnerable tenants and curb speculative activity contributing to rental price inflation.

However, Sánchez’s administration failed to secure enough parliamentary support. Junts per Catalunya, a Catalan separatist party that had backed Sánchez’s 2023 government formation, refused to back the housing reforms. The party argued that the measures would reduce the availability of rental properties and inadvertently drive prices higher. The conservative People’s Party (PP) and far-right Vox party also opposed the bill, renewing demands for Sánchez to call snap elections to resolve the political deadlock.

The opposition’s stance comes amid growing political uncertainty. Opinion polls before the vote indicated that PP and Vox could potentially form a majority coalition if early elections were held, potentially ending Sánchez’s premiership. Some analysts suggest that Sánchez himself may consider calling elections soon, as he faces limited prospects for legislative achievements during the remainder of his term.

“He has to call elections within nine months or so,” commented Pablo Simón, a political science professor at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. “The question is whether there will be a better moment in three or six months to do so. The answer is probably no.”

The government’s difficulties have been compounded by recent controversies, including a surge of unauthorized migrants entering Ceuta, a Spanish enclave in North Africa, and ongoing corruption investigations involving members of Sánchez’s close circle, including allegations against his wife, which she denies.

In response to the opposition’s rejection of the bill, Spain’s housing minister, Isabel Rodríguez, sharply criticized the PP and Vox. She accused them of abandoning the public amid street protests while engaging with interests she described as hostile to Spain’s housing sector.

Following the bill’s failure, the apartment owner involved in Abascal’s eviction reached an agreement allowing her to return home, concluding a highly publicized chapter in the broader debate over Spain’s affordable housing crisis. The political ramifications of the vote continue to unfold as Sánchez’s government faces growing pressure to find solutions or confront potential early elections.