Around 120,000 people marched through Madrid on Wednesday during Spain's first general strike in 14 years, protesting soaring housing costs and purchasing power ahead of a snap election.
The 24-hour stoppage, called by tenants' associations and later backed by the UGT and CCOO unions, brought picket lines to factories, ports and transport hubs across the country. The Confederation of Tenants' Association claimed about four million people had taken part by midday.
In Madrid, government officials estimated 120,000 demonstrators gathered despite pouring rain, carrying placards shaped like houses and chanting "We have no home." Paula Diaz, a 25-year-old theatre technician who lives with her parents, told AFP: "People work a lot and it isn't enough to pay the rent, to pay for a house." Sandra Mora of the Madrid Tenants' Union told broadcaster RNE: "We, the workers – who are also renters or who also pay mortgages – are the ones with the power to halt production and bring the economy to a standstill."
The strike followed weeks of protests sparked by the September eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal from her Madrid home, where she had lived for seven decades; she died in hospital weeks later. Spain faces a shortage of 750,000 homes, according to the central bank. The average monthly rent of €1,176 represents 98.7 percent of a young person's average monthly income, according to the Youth Council.
Union leaders reported high participation in several sectors, including 90 percent in automotive and ports and 82 percent in waste collection, though they said turnout was uneven across regions. Business groups disputed the figures, with the CEOE saying electricity demand fell only around 5 percent and calling the strike a failure.
In Barcelona, authorities estimated 55,000 people marched along the Passeig de Gràcia, while organizers claimed 400,000. Small groups of hooded protesters later vandalized shops and set fire to rubbish bins, leading to clashes with police and more than 50 arrests nationwide.
The demonstrations came 18 days before the November 29 parliamentary election called by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. Almudena López, 74, attended the Madrid protest with her husband, saying her 43-year-old son, who works in IT, can only afford to rent a room in a shared apartment.
