What Sánchez told the country

Sánchez, Spain's socialist prime minister, chose a televised address on Monday morning to make official a decision that had been widely expected: Spain will hold an early general election on Sunday 29 November. The prime minister, who has been in office since 2018, stood by his government's record while conceding that it had made mistakes, and told viewers the moment had arrived for Spaniards to deliver their verdict.

Turning to viewers directly, Sánchez said:

He said the world finds itself in a complex era of transformation and transition, and said he had faith in Spaniards, calling them brave, compassionate and unafraid to stand on the right side of history. He also pledged that his side would strive to regain voters' trust and win again.

The decrees that fell on Friday

The election call came three days after rightwing parties defeated the emergency housing legislation put forward by Sánchez's minority government. The legislation consisted of two decrees holding a range of measures intended to improve access to housing. In congress on Friday, the conservative People's Party (PP), the far-right Vox and the rightwing Catalan pro-independence party Junts combined to vote the decrees down. Their provisions included:

• •a ban on evictions until 2030
• •the regulation of temporary lettings
• •the regulation of lettings by room

The PP said it rejected the plans because it holds that building homes, rather than regulating the market, is the way to tackle the crisis.

The contest ahead

Sánchez again framed the election as a choice between his progressive government and a Spanish right that, he argues, would curtail freedoms and turn back progress. Polling has consistently placed the PP well ahead of his Spanish Socialist Workers' party, with support for Vox rising. Even so, the PP may find itself relying on Vox's support to form a government.

The housing focus and Ceuta

Sánchez may hope that the focus on housing, and the right's rejection of his plans, will bring leftwing voters out to the polls. The housing issue has, in turn, drawn attention away from the much-criticised handling of the continuing crisis in Ceuta, Spain's North African enclave. That crisis began when about 70,000 people crossed into the territory from neighbouring Morocco within the space of 48 hours.

Voters will go to the polls on Sunday 29 November, with polls consistently placing the PP well ahead of Sánchez's Spanish Socialist Workers' party and showing Vox's support rising.