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PoliticsPress ✓ 7 outlets · dates per the published electoral calendar

Sánchez dissolves the Cortes and calls a general election for Nov. 29

Three days after losing both of his housing decrees in Congress, the prime minister brings the vote forward by about eight months. He wants a “much broader progressive majority.” The PP welcomes the news and the left negotiates against the clock.

Pedro Sánchez appeared at La Moncloa first thing Monday and announced what had been in the air for days: an early general election on Sunday, Nov. 29. An extraordinary Council of Ministers approved the dissolution of the Cortes Generales. The term would have ended naturally in July 2027. “The time has come to decide what future you want,” he said, as reported by RTVE. He added that he needs “a much broader progressive majority” to keep governing, according to El País.

The trigger was the vote on Friday, Oct. 2. Congress struck down the two housing decrees the Government had approved after the protests over the eviction in Madrid of Maricarmen Abascal, 87. The first fell by 172 votes in favor and 178 against. Junts, the PP and Vox voted no. Junts held to its rejection even though Housing Minister Isabel Rodríguez offered to process the texts as a government bill.

The calendar is short. The electoral law sets 54 days between publication of the decree calling the election and the vote. The campaign would begin on Nov. 13 and the day of reflection would be Nov. 28, according to the calendar circulated by El País and La Vanguardia. Anyone who wants postal voting will have to request it in the coming weeks.

Alberto Núñez Feijóo welcomed the announcement with a “Finally!”, according to El Mundo. He promised a “profound change” and said he will not raise taxes. Isabel Díaz Ayuso asked voters not to use postal voting and spoke of a risk of “ballot rigging,” an accusation without evidence that the PSOE called undemocratic. Junts accused Sánchez of using “people’s pain” to cover up corruption. On the left, Podemos offered Sumar open primaries on Oct. 14 and 15 as a condition for running together.

The Government has not given up on housing. El País and Expansión report that the Council of Ministers will approve on Tuesday decrees similar to those that fell, so that the Permanent Deputation of Congress, the body that stays standing when the chambers are dissolved, can ratify them. Several jurists consulted by El País and El Mundo doubt that the maneuver is constitutional. The stock market was not frightened: the IBEX 35 closed up 1.12%, at 19,299.7 points.

One unknown remains over the electoral roll. The Supreme Court is reviewing the Government’s appeal against the suspension that prevents those who obtained citizenship under the grandchildren’s law from voting, according to El País, El Mundo and RTVE. If the suspension stands, hundreds of thousands of new Spaniards would be left out of the polls on Nov. 29. RTVE, for its part, proposed three election debates, including a head-to-head between Sánchez and Feijóo.

Unfold the story and DailyDrop’s take
By the numbers
Nov. 29date of the general election (Government)
172–178vote that struck down the first housing decree on Oct. 2
54 daysbetween the call and the vote, by law
Labor · HousingPress ✓ 5 outlets · date not yet set

CCOO and UGT will call a 24-hour general strike over housing

The two big unions agreed on Monday afternoon to call a 24-hour general strike this autumn. They are demanding it over the housing crisis and decent wages, according to Europa Press and RTVE. They thus join the proposal of the Sindicato de Inquilinas (tenants’ union), which that morning had announced a general strike for November: “It is the only way,” it said.

The pressure came from the street. On the night of Oct. 2, after the vote, a march reached the Puerta del Sol shouting “general strike!”, and a protest camp is still there. The Sindicato de Inquilinas warned on Monday that its fight “will not wait for any electoral calendar,” according to El País. The major unions, which until now had held back, gave way to that pressure, in El Mundo’s words.

The date is not set. Pepe Álvarez, the UGT leader, ruled out in ABC that the stoppage would fall in the middle of the election campaign. Former UGT leader Cándido Méndez admitted on RTVE that such a call right after the announcement of elections surprised him.

Unfold
Word of the day
Permanent DeputationParliament

A reduced body of Congress that keeps the chamber alive when it is dissolved. It can ratify urgent decree-laws until the new Cortes are constituted.

WeatherPress ✓ 4 outlets · toll still provisional

Torrential rain in the Vallès: Granollers at the center of the storm

Protecció Civil of the Generalitat sent an ES-Alert to mobile phones in the Vallès Oriental and the Maresme on Monday morning over heavy rain, and activated it again in the afternoon, according to Europa Press and El Mundo. In Granollers the rain opened a sinkhole in front of the courthouse and forced the evacuation of nearby buildings, La Vanguardia reported.

Residents and shopkeepers in Granollers complained to El País that the warning came late: “We were already on the move.” El Mundo reported at night that two people were being sought as missing; other outlets have not confirmed that. Mobility was badly affected on roads and trains in the area.

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Health · WorldPress ✓ 4 outlets · investigation open in Russia

Researcher at a plague lab in Siberia dies. Russia monitors nearly 200 people

A worker at a laboratory devoted to plague in Siberia died after a possible accident with the pathogen, according to El Mundo and La Vanguardia. Russian authorities are investigating whether plague was the cause. El País reported that nearly 200 people have been placed under medical observation.

Plague is treated with antibiotics if caught early, but its pneumonic form spreads between people. That is why contacts are being monitored. At night, Europa Press reported that Donald Trump offered help to Russia. There are no confirmed cases outside the laboratory’s circle.

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World · BrazilPress ✓ 3 outlets · first-round results

Flávio Bolsonaro wins the first round in Brazil. Lula heads to a runoff in three weeks

Jair Bolsonaro’s eldest son finished first in Sunday’s first round of the presidential election, ahead of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Neither cleared half the votes, so the two will meet in a runoff in three weeks, according to La Vanguardia and El País.

Lula admitted the result was “unexpected” and attacked his rival over his alleged ties to crime, El País reported. El Mundo describes a Bolsonaro family returning with more power than ever. For Spanish companies, which are heavily present in Brazil in banking, energy and telecommunications, the runoff will be the date that marks the year.

Unfold
In brief
  • RTVE proposes three election debates, including a head-to-head between Sánchez and Feijóo.RTVE
  • The Supreme Court reviews the Government’s appeal on the ‘grandchildren’s law’; thousands of new Spaniards could be left unable to vote on Nov. 29.El País · RTVE · El Mundo
  • The Pentagon withdraws its bombers from Britain’s Fairford base after an alleged attempted attack.El País · El Mundo
  • Ángel Arroyo, runner-up in the 1983 Tour de France, dies at 70.El País · El Mundo
  • Shakira adds a final concert in Madrid on Oct. 12, Día de la Hispanidad.El Mundo · El País
  • Aznar: if Sánchez forms a government again after Nov. 29, “the monarchy we have known would come to an end.”El País · El Mundo
  • Adelante Andalucía will run in the general election with its own slate.Europa Press · RTVE
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Unverified — what we could not confirm

“Sánchez has resigned.” False. He dissolved the Cortes and called elections; he remains prime minister with full powers until the election.
“Postal voting makes ballot rigging easy.” No one has provided evidence. Postal voting is a legal procedure with deadlines and oversight by Correos and the Electoral Board.
“The general strike will be in the middle of the campaign.” There is no date. UGT ruled out that it would coincide with the campaign, which begins on Nov. 13.
Glossary · dotted words — economics, law, security and science terms explained in the context of the story. The list grows every day.
INSIDESánchez dissolves the Cortes and calls a general election for Nov. 29PoliticsCCOO and UGT will call a 24-hour general strike over housingLabor · HousingTorrential rain in the Vallès: Granollers at the center of the stormWeatherResearcher at a plague lab in Siberia dies. Russia monitors nearly 200 peopleHealth · WorldFlávio Bolsonaro wins the first round in Brazil. Lula heads to a runoff in three weeksWorld · Brazil