Maricarmen Abascal, 87, dies after eviction; political row erupts
Opposition blames regional president for policies leading to death; mayor calls critics 'scavengers'.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
La presidenta de la Comunidad de Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, durante el pleno de la Asamblea de Madrid Eduardo Parra / Europa Press
Photograph: Eldiario.es (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Maricarmen Abascal, an 87-year-old woman who was evicted, has died.
- PSOE and Más Madrid have accused Isabel Díaz Ayuso and the PP of policies that led to Maricarmen's death.
- Ayuso has called the opposition 'political vultures' and criticised the national government.
- The PP and Vox refused to observe a minute of silence for Maricarmen in some regional assemblies.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 7 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 13 of the 20 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
42/100
Craft
65/100
Hype
41/100
20 sources · methodology
Thin on the left so far
Only 2 of the 7 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated left.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
Maricarmen Abascal, an 87-year-old woman who was evicted from her home, has died. Her death has ignited a political dispute, with opposition parties PSOE and Más Madrid accusing Isabel Díaz Ayuso, the president of the Community of Madrid, and her People's Party (PP) of implementing policies that contributed to Abascal's death. Ayuso, in turn, has labelled the opposition 'political vultures' and criticised the national government led by Pedro Sánchez.
The controversy intensified when the PP and Vox refused to observe a minute of silence for Abascal in some regional assemblies. Madrid Mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida described PSOE and Más Madrid as 'miserable' and 'scavengers' for what he termed their political exploitation of Abascal's death. He argued that if they respected her memory, they would have supported housing plans aimed at increasing protected rental properties.
Disagreement over minute of silence
Reports differ on the actions taken regarding a minute of silence. Eldiario.es states that the PP and Vox benches remained seated during a proposed applause for Abascal in the Madrid Assembly, while PSOE and Más Madrid had observed a minute of silence outside the building. La Razón reports that Madrid Mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida stated that if PSOE and Más Madrid respected Maricarmen's memory, they would have voted in favour of housing plans. El Mundo notes that the PP and Vox rejected a minute of silence in the Madrid City Council and the Cortes de Aragón, while it did take place in Valencia without Vox's participation. OKDIARIO reports that Vox's parliamentary group in the Valencian Courts did not participate in a minute of silence promoted by the PSOE, attributing Abascal's death to the policies of the socialist government. The Objective and El Plural report that the PP and Vox refused to observe a minute of silence in Aragon and remained seated during one in the Madrid City Hall respectively. Noticias de Navarra, Noticias de Gipuzkoa, and Deia state that PP and Vox refused to observe a minute of silence in the Assembly of Madrid, arguing they would not contribute to its political use.
What the coverage left out
None of the left-rated reports mention Madrid Mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida calling PSOE and Más Madrid 'miserable' and 'scavengers'. None of the right-rated reports mention the specific accusations made by PSOE spokesperson Mar Espinar, such as 'The rapacity of vulture funds has a face, yours,' or Más Madrid's statement that 'there will be no peace in the streets of Madrid.'
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 4 times, most recently on 8 Oct 2026, 11:00, and will add the sides that appear.
How other outlets pictured it
Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.
El alcalde de Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, durante un Pleno extraordinario en el Palacio de Cibeles, a 8 de octubre de 2026, en Madrid (España). El Ayuntamiento de Madrid celebra un Pleno extraordinario para dar luz verde a dos planes especiales aprobados inicialmente en Junta de Gobierno, el que permitirá implantar cualquier modalidad de hospedaje --incluidos apartahoteles, 'flex living', pensiones o casas de hospedaje-- en más de 240 parcelas de uso industrial repartidas en ocho dist...
La Razón — embedded from source
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
2 rated outlets
- The left-rated reports from Eldiario.es and El Pais focused on the political confrontation following Maricarmen Abascal's death. Eldiario.es reported that PSOE and Más Madrid directly accused Isabel Díaz Ayuso of responsibility for Abascal's death due to her housing policies, quoting PSOE spokesperson Mar Espinar saying, 'The rapacity of vulture funds has a face, yours.' The report highlighted Más Madrid's statement that 'there will be no peace in the streets of Madrid.' Eldiario.es also detailed exchanges between Ayuso and Más Madrid spokesperson Manuela Bergerot, where Ayuso accused the opposition of being 'cloacas' (sewers) and Bergerot stated that 'every eviction that occurs in Madrid bears your signature.' El Pais's headline stated, 'The Opposition After Maricarmen’s Death: “In the Streets of Madrid There Will Be No Peace”; Ayuso: “Are They Threatening Us?”' Both reports noted the PP's veto of a minute of silence proposed by More Madrid and PSOE.
Centre
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated centre has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Right
5 rated outlets
- Right-rated reports from La Razón, OKDIARIO, El Mundo, ABC, and El Debate focused on the accusations of political exploitation and the refusal to observe minutes of silence. La Razón reported that Madrid Mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida called PSOE and Más Madrid 'miserable' and 'scavengers' for using Maricarmen's death in a 'sectarian and partisan' manner. OKDIARIO reported that Vox's parliamentary group in the Valencian Courts did not participate in a minute of silence promoted by the PSOE, stating that the policies of Pedro Sánchez's socialist government had 'killed Maricarmen.' El Mundo's headline highlighted 'Insults of "Miserable" and "Carroñeros" and Accusations of Using It as "Electoral Strategy"'. ABC reported that Madrid's left kept a minute of silence in the Assembly, while the Popular Party did not. El Debate stated that the left interrupted the plenary session of the City of Madrid to observe a minute of silence.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Maricarmen Abascal, 87, dies after eviction; political row erupts?
- Of the 7 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 29% are rated left, 0% are rated centre, 71% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 20. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Maricarmen Abascal, 87, dies after eviction; political row erupts left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 7 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of Maricarmen Abascal, 87, dies after eviction; political row erupts biased?
- Maricarmen Abascal, 87, dies after eviction; political row erupts is one event reported by 20 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Maricarmen Abascal, 87, dies after eviction; political row erupts?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated left had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Maricarmen Abascal, 87, dies after eviction; political row erupts?
- 20 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- Who was Maricarmen Abascal?
- Maricarmen Abascal was an 87-year-old woman who died after being evicted from her home in Madrid. Her death has become a focal point for political debate regarding housing policies.
- What is the main political disagreement surrounding her death?
- The main disagreement is between opposition parties, PSOE and Más Madrid, who blame President Isabel Díaz Ayuso and the PP for policies leading to Abascal's death, and Ayuso and Mayor Almeida, who accuse the opposition of exploiting her death for political gain and label them 'vultures' and 'scavengers'.
- Did all political parties observe a minute of silence for Maricarmen?
- No, the PP and Vox refused to observe a minute of silence in some regional assemblies and city councils, arguing against the political use of the event. The left-wing parties, PSOE and Más Madrid, did observe minutes of silence in tribute to Abascal.
Read it at the source
20 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
2- Maricarmen's Death Ignites the Opposition Against Ayuso: "There Is No Consolation and There Will Be No Peace in the Streets of Madrid" (opens Eldiario.es in a new tab)
Eldiario.es — is Eldiario.es biased? Our profile of this outlet
- The Opposition After Maricarmen’s Death: “In the Streets of Madrid There Will Be No Peace”; Ayuso: “Are They Threatening Us?” (opens El Pais in a new tab)
Centre
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Right
5- Vox Does Not Participate in the Minute of Silence in the Cortes Promoted by the PSOE because "His Policies Have Killed Maricarmen" (opens OKDIARIO in a new tab)
- The Parties Set Fire to the Pre-Campaign After Maricarmen's Death: Insults of "Miserable" and "Carroñeros" and Accusations of Using It as "Electoral Strategy" (opens El Mundo in a new tab)
- Almeida Calls PSOE and More Madrid "Miserable and Scavengers" for Using Maricarmen (opens La Razón in a new tab)
La Razón — is La Razón biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- Madrid’s Left Keeps a Minute of Silence by Maricarmen in the Assembly (opens ABC in a new tab)
- The Left Interrupts the Plenary Session of the City of Madrid to Observe a Minute of Silence by Maricarmen (opens El Debate in a new tab)
Not rated
13- Video PP and Vox Join the Minute of Silence by Maricarmen in the Parliament of Andalusia (opens diariodesevilla.es in a new tab)
diariodesevilla.es — is diariodesevilla.es biased? Our profile of this outlet
- PP and Vox Refuse to Observe a Minute of Silence in Aragon by Maricarmen (opens The Objective in a new tab)
The Objective — is The Objective biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Almeida, PP and Vox Sit Down During the Minute of Silence by Maricarmen in the City Hall of Madrid (opens El Plural in a new tab)
- PSOE and More Madrid Reproach Almeida for Not Making a Minute of Silence for Maricarmen and He Calls Them 'Miserable' for 'Using' His Death (opens lacronicabadajoz.com in a new tab)
lacronicabadajoz.com — is lacronicabadajoz.com biased? Our profile of this outlet
- PSOE and More Madrid Reproach Almeida for Not Making a Minute of Silence for Maricarmen and He Calls Them 'Miserable' for 'Using' His Death (opens elcorreogallego.es in a new tab)
elcorreogallego.es — is elcorreogallego.es biased? Our profile of this outlet
- PSOE and More Madrid Reproach Almeida for Not Making a Minute of Silence for Maricarmen and He Calls Them 'Miserable' for 'Using' His Death (opens elcorreoweb.es in a new tab)
elcorreoweb.es — is elcorreoweb.es biased? Our profile of this outlet
- PSOE and More Madrid Reproach Almeida for Not Making a Minute of Silence for Maricarmen and He Calls Them 'Miserable' for 'Using' His Death (opens laprovincia.es in a new tab)
laprovincia.es — is laprovincia.es biased? Our profile of this outlet
- To Maricarmen - Padylla in THE DAY AND THE PROVINCE (opens La casa de mi tía in a new tab)
La casa de mi tía — is La casa de mi tía biased? Our profile of this outlet
Show 5 more
- PSOE and More Madrid Pay Homage to Maricarmen at the Cibeles Plenary Session After Rejecting the PP a Minute of Silence (opens Gacetín Madrid in a new tab)
Gacetín Madrid — is Gacetín Madrid biased? Our profile of this outlet
- PP and Vox Refuse to Observe a Minute of Silence for Mari Carmen in the Assembly of Madrid (opens noticiasdegipuzkoa.eus in a new tab)
noticiasdegipuzkoa.eus — is noticiasdegipuzkoa.eus biased? Our profile of this outlet
- PP and Vox Refuse to Observe a Minute of Silence for Mari Carmen in the Assembly of Madrid (opens Deia in a new tab)
- PP and Vox Refuse to Observe a Minute of Silence for Mari Carmen in the Assembly of Madrid (opens Noticias de Navarra in a new tab)
Noticias de Navarra — is Noticias de Navarra biased? Our profile of this outlet
- The Valencian Courts Will Observe a Minute of Silence by Maricarmen in the Control Session to Llorca (opens informacion.es in a new tab)
informacion.es — is informacion.es biased? Our profile of this outlet
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