Where is Spain headed after the snap election announcement?

Spain's economic data has been positive recently, but politically, the country has been mired in a prolonged crisis for months. On Monday, the social democratic Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez responded with a surprise move to break the deadlock: He is calling an early election for November 29 . The sudden announcement followed a dramatic political defeat for the government. On Friday, October 2, Sanchez's emergency measures to tackle the housing crisis failed in parliament. Seven lawmakers from the conservative Catalan separatist party Junts, whose support the government has relied on since 2023, brought the measures down. Sanchez says he is now calling for a "much broader progressive majority.