Madrid President Isabel Díaz Ayuso to address Puerta del Sol housing protests on Cuatro talk show Horizonte

Live prime-time appearance on Cuatro

Madrid Regional President Isabel Díaz Ayuso will appear live on the Cuatro television program Horizonte on Thursday, 1 October 2026, starting at 21:10. The interview, hosted by Iker Jiménez and Carmen Porter, will focus on the tent camp in Madrid's Puerta del Sol and the broader housing crisis across the region. The encampment outside the regional government headquarters has intensified institutional conflict between the central Government Delegation, the Madrid City Council, and the Madrid regional executive. This broadcast is Ayuso's second appearance on Cuatro within a fortnight, following her interview the previous week with Nacho Abad on the morning current affairs program En boca de todos.

Show format and rare political interviews

The live interview represents an unusual occurrence for Horizonte, which has largely avoided routine political interviews across its six seasons on the air. Host Iker Jiménez explained to viewers that the program maintains a self-imposed boundary against broad political discussions, reserving interviews for specific public crises.

You know that this program does not do interviews with politicians about politics in general. We do not know why either, it is a rule we imposed on ourselves.

The most recent exception occurred when Ceuta President Juan Jesús Vivas appeared during field coverage in late August and participated in a live studio interview on 17 September 2026 to discuss migration pressures. Other political figures who have participated in discussions include former members of the European Parliament Javier Nart and Antonio López-Istúriz, as well as Ceuta regional assembly deputies Melchor León and Juan Sergio Redondo.

Response to Puerta del Sol protests

Jiménez confirmed that the interview will confront the ongoing demonstrations at the Puerta del Sol, where protesters marked the statue of the Bear and the Strawberry Tree with direct slogans targeting the regional president.

There is graffiti that says 'Ayuso, beware'. We do not know very well beware of what or why Ayuso specifically, and tomorrow we will be able to ask her.

The announcement followed a Wednesday broadcast that drew an 8.2% audience share and 1,057,000 viewers in the 21:10 time slot, despite competing sports programming. The production team previously covered housing controversies earlier in the week, including an eviction involving the property fund Urbagestión.

Madrid Assembly and legislative agenda

The television appearance coincides with intensive parliamentary activity in the Madrid Assembly, where the entire opposition has directed questions to Ayuso and regional ministers regarding housing policy. Plenary topics for Thursday also encompass the acquisition of a property on Calle General Martínez Campos, the Invest in Madrid foreign investment agency, the Education sectoral conference, and waiting list management at Hospital Ramón y Cajal. The regional parliament will subsequently address a government bill updating the 1997 rental deposit inspection regulations, modernizing outdated provisions that still cite pesetas and reference the defunct Instituto de la Vivienda de Madrid. The legislation will advance under a single-reading procedure, while Spain's Congress of Deputies prepares to vote Friday on two housing-related royal decrees.