The demonstrations come amid growing public anger over soaring rents and house prices, following the defeat of two measures proposed by the government of Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and the eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal from a Madrid apartment where she had lived for nearly seven decades.
The parliamentary defeat has dealt another political blow to Sánchez’s minority government and raised renewed questions about whether it can remain in power until the next scheduled general election in 2027.
Catalan separatist party Junts, whose support was essential for the measures to pass, voted against the package, arguing that the proposals lacked sufficient rigor.
Following the vote, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, leader of the main opposition conservative Popular Party (PP), called on Sánchez to “call elections as soon as possible”.
After eight years in power, Feijoo said Sánchez had the backing of “neither the streets nor parliament”.
Recent opinion polls have generally placed the Popular Party ahead of the Socialists, adding to pressure on the government as the housing crisis continues to fuel public discontent.
Meanwhile, the Tenants' Union, which has been coordinating the protests, has called for demonstrations in more than 50 cities on Saturday.
“There is an irreparable disconnect between what the people want and what the parties vote for,” the union said in a statement.
In Madrid, activists and protesters have been camping for about a week in Puerta del Sol, one of the capital’s main tourist squares, ahead of the planned demonstrations.
Protesters are expected to set off from several locations across the city at noon before converging on Plaza de Cibeles in central Madrid.
The measures rejected by parliament on Friday included the automatic renewal of rental contracts when they expire and provisions intended to restrict the eviction of vulnerable tenants.
The package also sought to address the role of so-called vulture funds, investment firms that purchase properties at low prices in pursuit of higher returns.
The parliamentary rejection comes as housing remains one of the main concerns for Spaniards, with housing supply failing to keep pace with demand and rents and property prices continuing to rise.
According to real estate website Idealista, average rents in Spain have almost doubled over the past decade, while asking prices for homes have increased by about 90 percent.
The eviction of Abascal became a powerful symbol of the broader housing crisis and helped intensify long-running anger over rapidly rising housing costs.
Abascal was forced to leave the Madrid apartment where she had lived for around 70 years after it was acquired by an investment company that sought to increase her rent by 275 percent, according to housing campaigners.
Her eviction, which was carried out while she was on a stretcher, triggered nationwide protests and placed renewed attention on the plight of vulnerable tenants facing displacement amid Spain’s escalating housing costs.
The backlash eventually forced the property’s new owners to reach an agreement allowing Abascal to return to the apartment at a low rent.
But with parliament now having rejected the government’s proposed tenant protections, housing campaigners are preparing to take their anger back to the streets, further intensifying pressure on Sánchez’s government.