BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spain’s government looks set to lose two key votes it needs to ratify a package of emergency measures aimed at tackling the nation’s housing affordability crisis when lawmakers convene on Friday, while protesters march on the Parliament demanding help for renters.
The Catalan separatist party Junts — essential for the approval of the two government decrees — said in a statement Friday morning that it will vote against them. That appears to have doomed the measures when combined with the “No" from the center-right Popular Party and far-right Vox.
Click to Gallery
Activists protest near the Spanish Parliament following the eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen to demand stronger laws to protect renters in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Activists protest near the Spanish Parliament following the eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen to demand stronger laws to protect renters in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Maricarmen, 87, waits at home for police to arrive before being evicted from the home where she lived in Madrid, Spain, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. (Fernando Sánchez/Europa Press via AP)
People gather during a protest following the eviction last Wednesday of 87-year-old Maricarmen to demand stronger laws to protect renters at Puerta del Sol in Madrid, Spain, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
The likely defeat sparked speculation in Spanish media that Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez could consider bringing forward elections from next year. Sánchez didn’t speak when he arrived at the chamber in downtown Madrid, where protesters in favor of the measures had gathered outside. His office did not immediately respond to questions from The Associated Press regarding a possible snap election.
The measures were intended to quell a public uproar following the televised eviction of an 87-year-old woman last week in Madrid that sparked protests and a camp-in that has occupied Madrid’s most important square ever since. Barring a surprise, the progressive coalition of Sánchez will suffer a costly legislative defeat that will likely fan the flames of the protests.
The elderly woman whose eviction sparked the protests, Maricarmen Abascal, has become a symbol for the fight for lower housing costs in the southern European country, where many people are priced out of buying a home and are being squeezed by a small rental market.
The company that evicted her finally caved under immense public and political pressure this week and said that she can return to the apartment. Abascal is currently in a hospital since being removed from her home on a stretcher, but her lawyer said she is happy to know she will be going home.
Spain's 350-seat Parliament started its session at 11 a.m.
The first decree is meant to stop evictions of vulnerable people like Abascal, make real estate speculation harder, impose tighter restrictions on short-term leases and provide tax incentives to encourage renting and the construction of housing.
The second decree is more controversial. It proposes to make leases automatically renew when they are set to expire, essentially making them indefinite. A property owner would have to pay a tenant 12 months of rent to break the contract.
Junts argued that the government’s housing measures would lead to higher housing costs by reducing the supply of available properties and would fail to stop speculators. It urged the government to reconsider its measures.
Junts is one of a group of small parties that Sánchez needed to woo when he formed a new government in 2023 and has proven to be a prickly political partner ever since. Its leader, the separatist Carles Puigdemont, has resided in Belgium since fleeing Spain after leading a failed bid to make northeastern Catalonia an independent nation in 2017.
Activists protest near the Spanish Parliament following the eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen to demand stronger laws to protect renters in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Activists protest near the Spanish Parliament following the eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen to demand stronger laws to protect renters in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Maricarmen, 87, waits at home for police to arrive before being evicted from the home where she lived in Madrid, Spain, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. (Fernando Sánchez/Europa Press via AP)
People gather during a protest following the eviction last Wednesday of 87-year-old Maricarmen to demand stronger laws to protect renters at Puerta del Sol in Madrid, Spain, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Formula 1's replacement race in Malaysia was meant to be the ultimate test in the rain. It hasn't arrived yet.
Both practice sessions on Friday defied the forecast of heavy rain to stay dry and keep things uncertain about how this year's cars will cope if wet weather comes.
Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc were the pacesetters in the two sessions on a day of learning for standings leader Kimi Antonelli, who's looking to bounce back from what he's called his “worst weekend” of the season.
The unusually named Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia takes Antonelli and his rivals to a track F1 last visited in 2017, returning to the schedule because of the disruption caused by the Iran war.
Malaysia has a history of chaotic races and sudden downpours and the abrasive asphalt tends to chew up tires, too. It could be the first real wet race since F1 shook up its regulations for 2026.
Verstappen led first practice by 0.383 seconds from George Russell, winner of last week's race in Azerbaijan, with Verstappen's Red Bull teammate Isack Hadjar third. Leclerc was fastest by .099 from Hadjar in the second as Lando Norris placed third for McLaren.
Antonelli was fifth in the first practice session and eighth in the second.
Antonelli still has a dominant 66-point lead over Mercedes teammate Russell, but that was trimmed from 81 last week after his crash in qualifying made for damage limitation in Azerbaijan.
Antonelli scrambled from 16th on the grid to finish fifth, helped by plenty of incidents ahead of him, while Russell held off Verstappen for his first win in nearly three months.
“Last weekend was probably the worst weekend from me, from my side of the season,” the 20-year-old Antonelli said.
“It was what I needed on Sunday, I needed a clean result after a very disruptive weekend. After the race, I wasn’t happy with the result and everything but I learn many things and the most important is that I need to always be 100%.
“I need to really do my best to achieve the best result because if I don’t do everything right, or I don’t try to do everything right in my power, then nothing is going to come my way.”
The 28-year-old Russell has made no secret of his struggles getting used to the 2026 cars, as he's had to watch his younger teammate dominate week-in, week-out.
After using the mid-season break to change his approach, a process he's likened to a golfer getting used to a new swing, Russell finally seemed comfortable in Azerbaijan.
He went fastest by nearly a second in qualifying, and his narrow margin of victory over Verstappen in the race owed more to an unusual yellow-flag decision on track than anything else.
Mercedes has brought a package of upgrades to its car this week, something Russell predicts could help him.
“I’m enjoying it more than I have done recently because I just feel more at one with the car and hopefully this new upgrade with a few characteristic changes that will also play into my favor a bit more," he said Thursday. "Bring it on."
Lewis Hamilton said Ferrari remains united as he criticized attempts to “break our spirit” after the Italian brand confirmed it retains confidence in Fred Vasseur as team principal.
“Outside sources seem to be so negative towards us as a team and trying to break our spirit, but they’re not succeeding,” Hamilton said.
The latest speculation over Vasseur's future came after former Red Bull boss Christian Horner told the Times of London last week that Ferrari was the only team in F1 he'd consider joining without an ownership stake, calling it “the dream” and a “sleeping giant.”
Meanwhile, Ferrari is struggling on the track, with no podium finishes in the last five races for Hamilton or Charles Leclerc.
See AP’s full auto racing coverage here
Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc of Monaco and his teammate Lewis Hamilton of Britain steer their cars during the first free practice session ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)
Spectators watch Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco steers his car during the second practice session ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Artists wearing costumes arrive to perform for fans ahead of the first free practice of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)
People watch Mercedes pit crew practice on the car of driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy ahead of the first free practice session of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain steers his car during the first free practice session ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands prepares for the first free practice session of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands steers his car during the first free practice session ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain speaks during an interview outside the paddock ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia at the Sepang International Circuit in Sepang, Malaysia, Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy, right, at the pit wall ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia at the Sepang International Circuit in Sepang, Malaysia, Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy arrives in the pit-lane after the Formula One Azerbaijan Grand Prix auto race in Baku, Azerbaijan, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov)
