Spain's Catalonia calls snap election as regional budget rejected

Catalonia will hold an early election on May 12 after the separatist minority government of the Spanish region failed to approve its budget proposal in the regional parliament, Catalan government head Pere Aragones said on Wednesday. The move came on the eve of a lower house vote in Madrid on an amnesty bill for pro-independence activists and officials involved in Catalonia's separatist bid in the last decade.

Catalonia will hold an early election on May 12 after the separatist minority government of the Spanish region failed to approve its budget proposal in the regional parliament, Catalan government head Pere Aragones said on Wednesday. The election had originally been scheduled for February 2025 at the end of the current legislative term.

The snap election could have implications for national politics as Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez relies on Catalan separatist parties to pass legislation. The move came on the eve of a lower house vote in Madrid on an amnesty bill for pro-independence activists and officials involved in Catalonia's separatist bid in the last decade. The bill is widely expected to be approved.