Spain general strike over housing: 120,000 in Madrid, 55,000 in Barcelona per police

Turnout across Spain

Tens of thousands of people joined demonstrations in more than 50 Spanish cities on Wednesday, 11 November, the day unions called a general strike over housing and decent wages. It was the first general strike in Spain in 14 years. Madrid and Barcelona drew the largest crowds, and police and local authorities counted 120,000 people in Madrid and 55,000 in Barcelona. The Sindicato de Inquilinas, the tenants' union that co-led the marches with the trade unions, put the Madrid march at 400,000. In the south, unions cancelled daytime marches in Seville, Málaga, Granada, Almería and Jaén because of bad weather linked to depression Charles, yet thousands still gathered there in the late afternoon, according to police.

In Madrid the march ran under rain along central avenues, between the Atocha roundabout and Plaza de España. The tenants' union led the column behind a banner that targeted employers, rentier interests and their governments.

Madrid120,000

Barcelona55,000

Madrid

120000 people

Barcelona

55000 people

Data from the article text

A contested count

Unions called the strike a success and said adherence ranged from 40% to 84% depending on the region, which they said exceeded expectations. The employers' confederation CEOE said overall adherence was 5%. The sources offer no common measure, so the two figures stand side by side. Tenants' union spokeswoman Valeria Racu said the strike and marches were aimed at all governments, central, regional and local, whether left or right. She accused them of having protected rentier interests.

Government silence and opposition attacks

The government largely stayed quiet on Wednesday. It said it had maximum respect for those who joined the strike and for those who went to work, and it left the assessment to the unions. Interior minister Marlaska had not explained police charges during the protests, a silence that unions and citizens criticised. Sources at Moncloa privately said they were 'scandalised' by remarks from PP and Vox leaders questioning the strike, and they defended the unions and the right to strike. Miguel Tellado, the PP secretary general and campaign director, accused union leaders of acting 'as ministers' of the government and called the strike a 'despropósito'. The PP also posted AI-generated images mocking the unions on social media.

Housing measures before the campaign

The government plans to use the Diputación Permanente session in Congress on Thursday, 12 November, to return to the debate on housing. A housing decree-law is expected to be validated there. The executive intends to promote the housing measures it has adopted during its term and to seek their approval in the next government. Officials said the strike's demands match their own policies while defending the unions against opposition criticism. The official start of the election campaign is Friday, 13 November.

How the protests began

The mobilisation dates back to late September, when the tenants' union began protests over housing after the eviction of an 87-year-old woman from a central Madrid home she had lived in for more than 70 years. She died in hospital days after being forced to leave. El Periódico columnist Joan Tapia argued that housing policy requires a pact between the central government and the regions, because competences are widely shared. He also questioned calling a general strike 15 days before the elections.