Spain's Tenant Unions Are Rewriting Housing Policy Outside Traditional Politics
Grassroots tenant organizations in Spain have successfully shifted housing policy away from decades of market-driven governance by using civil disobedience, media strategy, and political alliances rather than conventional lobbying. The findings suggest activist movements can reshape policy frameworks on major economic issues—a model with implications for housing markets and regulatory debates across Europe.
Originaltitel: Can Tenants' Unions Challenge Neoliberal Housing Governance?: The Emergence of a New Movement in Spain and Its Impact on Post-neoliberal Housing Policy
<p>This paper analyses how tenants' organizations approach the state for "post-neoliberal housing policy" that challenges decades of neoliberal housing governance. It introduces the concept of "counter-hegemonic legislative strategies" to illustrate how tenants' movements in Spain have achieved this policy shift by influencing legislative changes. In contrast to traditional lobbying or representation-focused movements, unions aim to organize tenants offensively against the commodification of housing and capitalist relations, positioning themselves as counter-hegemonic forces. The paper outlines three mechanisms used to achieve this: turning tenant evictions and landlord threats into acts of civil disobedience; using the media strategically to shape narratives; and exploiting institutional windows of opportunity through alliances and political crises. While the legislative victories gained by these unions may fall short of their full demands, the paper emphasizes that their impact goes beyond political outcomes. Their activities contribute to contesting neoliberal housing trajectories, disrupting hegemonic governance, and reshaping the political landscape.</p>