Half a million march across Spain over housing crisis as PM Sanchez faces snap election gamble

From the Newshound archive · first published 4 October 2026 · last updated 5 October 2026.

Spain's worst housing unrest in years erupted on Saturday as up to 500,000 people took to the streets in Madrid and dozens of other cities, one day after Pedro Sanchez's emergency tenant-protection legislation was defeated in parliament. Valencia saw the most serious violence, where protesters hurled fences at riot police, who responded with rubber bullets and tear gas; nine officers were injured and five demonstrators were arrested. Spanish media report that Sanchez is now weighing a snap election as early as November, though his office has neither confirmed nor denied the reports.

The immediate trigger was the eviction of an 87-year-old Madrid woman who could no longer afford a steep rent increase, which set off outrage across the country.

Protesters are calling for rents to be halved, evictions to be stopped, and 'vulture funds' to be barred from purchasing property — and talks over a general strike are under way.

Around 30 demonstrators forced their way into the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia, where a property investment summit was being held at the time.