Spanish General Strike and Housing Protests Sweep Madrid and Barcelona Ahead of Election

• Average rents in Spain have nearly doubled over the past decade, straining household budgets and fuelling voter discontent.
• The protests were triggered by the eviction of an 87‑year‑old woman in Madrid, which became a symbol of the housing crisis.

Updated 11 min 43 sec ago

November 12, 2026 02:34

BARCELONA, Spain: Millions of Spanish workers shut down businesses and public transportation across the eurozone’s fourth largest economy on Wednesday, before thousands took to the streets of major cities in a nationwide protest over soaring rents and real‑estate prices.

Housing activists hope the massive show of force will lead to more regulations to protect tenants and crack down on real‑estate speculation, while Spain’s left‑wing government is seeking to mobilize voters ahead of a national election later this month with polls against it.

The walkout — under the slogan “Salaries. Housing. Prices.” — was the first general strike in Spain in 14 years, and the first whose principal push was born from unrest over housing.

The strike culminated in workers and average citizens gathering in downtown Barcelona and Madrid, along with protests in other cities. Housing activists said 400,000 marchers filled Barcelona, while the city government reported 55,000 participants.

In Barcelona, many storefronts on Paseo de Gracia, a main shopping boulevard, were boarded up before demonstrators walked behind a huge banner reading “Live. Not Just Survive.” After the peaceful march, some younger protesters smashed brand‑name store windows, prompting a rapid police response in riot gear.

Carlos Ferrer, a 45‑year‑old customer‑service worker traveling back to Alicante by train from Barcelona, said that “sometimes only radical measures, such as a general strike, can force a change of course.” “Authorities need to feel pressure from the citizens so they can do something,” he added.

Barcelona’s metro and public buses ceased operation outside rush hour, leaving street traffic light. Many smaller establishments like coffee shops, however, did open.

In Madrid, the wide Paseo del Prado boulevard became a sea of umbrellas as a huge crowd turned out in the evening’s march despite heavy rain. Earlier, protesters blocked the Gran Vía, the city center’s main thoroughfare, until police in riot gear pushed them to the sidewalks.

Manuel Gómez, a 19‑year‑old student in Madrid, welcomed the protests, which he said marked a change for the country. “In Spain, we have a serious problem, which is that when we don’t like something, we never go out to protest,” he said.

Union leaders hailed the strike as a success, while Spain’s business owners’ groups said that it had fallen flat. But they agreed that worker participation was higher in heavy industry and transportation, while it lagged in other sectors of the economy like retail and restaurants.

“The strike has exceeded the labour unions’ expectations,” said Unai Sordo, secretary‑general of CCOO, one of the two unions calling the strike for a nation of 22 million registered workers.

CCOO and UGT, the other major union organizing the strike, reported significant work stoppages in strategic sectors. They said that the stoppages amounted to 90 % in the automotive and port sectors, 85 % in the meat industry, 82 % in waste collection and 75 % in the energy sector. Many schools and universities closed.

About 5 % of flights for Wednesday were cancelled at airports across Spain, according to the country’s airport operator, AENA.

Miguel Ángel García, the spokesperson for the regional Madrid government, which is run by Spain’s conservative Popular Party (PP), called the strike “a complete and authentic failure,” citing just 9 % participation among public‑sector employees in the region.

Minor incidents were reported in the first hours of the strike. Tires were set on fire at roadblocks in Barcelona, and scuffles with police were reported near Madrid’s main wholesale market. Police used pepper spray against protesters in several locations and made 29 arrests nationwide, nine in Madrid.

In Barcelona, demonstrators wearing masks interrupted the live broadcast of a morning talk show on one of the state broadcaster’s channels. They held up a large sign in favour of the strike before the signal was temporarily lost.

Police said they arrested 29 people across Spain for strike‑related incidents, nine of them in Madrid.

Workers and activists are demanding more government action on housing. “The average rent in Spain has almost doubled in the last decade, eating into household budgets and upsetting voters,” they noted.

The anger peaked after the eviction of an 87‑year‑old woman from her Madrid home last month. The subsequent death of Maricarmen, as she became known, turned her into a symbol of Spaniards who cannot dream of home ownership.

Housing activists harnessed the outcry over Maricarmen’s eviction to call for the strike, quickly gaining union backing. “The uproar that began over 40 days ago with the eviction of Maricarmen hasn’t stopped growing and now floods the streets of our cities,” said Alicia del Río, spokesperson for the Tenants Union, in Madrid.

Activists are pushing for automatic lease renewals, more public housing and a new minimum‑wage agreement. Unions demand additional protections for renters.

Spain’s left hopes to refocus the election on housing. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, seeking a fourth term for his left‑wing coalition, called an early election for Nov. 29. A recent high‑speed train collision that killed 69 people has complicated his campaign.

The strike now offers an opportunity for Sánchez’s Socialists and other left‑wing parties to stay in power, analyst Oriol Bartomeus said. “The Socialists need the strike to succeed and be free of violence so the election campaign can swing back to being about housing,” Bartomeus, a professor of political science at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, told The Associated Press.

Sánchez posted a video on X this week praising past social achievements such as the 40‑hour work week and national health insurance, which he said were the fruit of the workers’ movement. “It wasn’t easy, but they changed Spain,” Sánchez said, warning that right‑wing parties would underfund social services if they took power.

Right‑wing parties could benefit if the strike turns violent or sees low turnout. “PP and the far‑right Vox argue that the unions are trying to help Sánchez, as months of polling show voters leaning toward change,” Bartomeus noted. “If the strike descends into violence or has a low turnout, right‑wing parties could profit.” He added, “The Popular Party and Vox both want the strike to be a flop and to end in scenes of burning dumpsters and shattered shop windows, so that the next morning they can say, ‘This is chaos and we are coming to establish order.’”

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