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Spanish lawmakers rejected legislation that would have suspended evictions of vulnerable tenants until 2030 after Junts per Catalunya pulled its backing hours before the parliamentary vote on Friday, according to The New York Times. The small Catalan party argued that the bill as written would reduce the supply of rental housing and increase prices. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist-led coalition lacks a majority in parliament and had relied on Junts in previous votes on housing measures. The defeat has deepened a political crisis and prompted calls for early elections from within Sánchez’s own party.
The vote came amid widespread outrage over the Sept. 23 eviction of Maricarmen Abascal, an 87-year-old disabled woman who had lived in her Madrid apartment for more than 70 years, a New York Times report stated. Police removed Abascal on a stretcher after the property investment firm Urbagestión raised her rent from around 500 euros to 2,650 euros monthly, exceeding her pension. Protesters camped out in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol square demanding broader reforms, with demonstrations spreading to other cities including Barcelona and Seville. Abascal’s lawyer later announced an agreement allowing her to return to the home under a new contract at a similar rent level, according to a follow-up BBC report published on Sept. 29.
The rejected package included tax incentives for landlords who cut rents, temporary bans on real estate purchases by so-called vulture funds and regulations targeting short-term tourist rentals, The New York Times reported. Health Minister Mónica García said the measures would bring relief to more than five million people when the government announced them on Sept. 29. Housing Minister Isabel Rodríguez urged lawmakers to back the decrees so that Abascal’s case would lead to benefits for many others. The proposals took effect immediately as decrees but required parliamentary approval within 30 days.
Spain’s General Council of the Judiciary figures show 21,562 judicial evictions took place in 2025, with 76.6 percent linked to rental agreements rather than mortgage defaults. Catalonia accounted for 28.4 percent of the national total, while Madrid ranked fourth with 2,119 cases that year. Rental-related evictions have risen as a share of the overall total from 53 percent in 2015 to 75 percent in 2025, according to RTVE data analysis. Over the period since Sánchez took office in 2018, courts have carried out more than 272,000 evictions nationwide.
Rising rents driven by tourism, foreign buyers and limited public housing have fueled public frustration, particularly among young Spaniards, an Associated Press analysis found. The minority government comprising Sánchez’s Socialists and the Sumar alliance has faced repeated difficulties passing housing reforms, with a similar bill failing in February. Regional governments controlled by the conservative People’s Party have often resisted implementing national tenant protections. Protests under the slogan “No More Maricarmens” highlighted these tensions following Abascal’s removal.
In remarks at the United Nations General Assembly, Sánchez described evictions as “a social tragedy that we cannot accept as a country” and criticized local and regional authorities in Madrid for their role. He later promised responsible action to address the emergency. Amnesty International Spain called the Abascal case a violation of human rights that prioritized speculative interests over the right to housing. The political fallout from the failed vote has increased pressure on Sánchez ahead of planned national elections next year.
