Four million Spanish workers participated in a general strike on Wednesday, protesting the country's housing affordability crisis. This walkout is the first general strike since 2012 and is supported by Spain's two largest unions, UGT and CCOO, representing over a million workers. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez hopes to capitalize on voter resentment over housing issues in the upcoming snap election on November 29th. Unions described the strike as a success despite uneven participation across Spain, with the strongest support in coastal regions. Spain faces a housing deficit of approximately 750,000 homes, which is projected to rise to over a million by 2028, according to the central bank. This shortage has increased the rental market pressure: the average rental price of €1,176 costs about 98.7 percent of a young person's average monthly salary. Angela de Miguel of Spain's main business lobby CEOE argued that the strike was counterproductive, as it affected small businesses while advocating for solutions like building more homes and lowering taxes. The strike led to limited disruption in major cities; Barcelona's metro suspended non-peak hour trains, and Madrid's metro experienced a 42 percent drop in peak-hour usage. Despite this, the economic shift from manufacturing to services and the rise of remote work could mitigate the strike's impact. According to Miguel Cardoso, chief economist at BBVA Research, the effect is expected to be less pronounced than in previous years.