In spite of a ban on protests, sit-ins continued in Spain ahead of elections on Sunday. The protests brought thousands of people onto the streets to show their opposition to the perceived failure of the government to deal with the economic crisis within the country and to tackle spiralling unemployment figures.

The protesters are also seeking judicial reform, an end to the culture of political corruption and an overhaul of Spain’s current electoral system. The protest ban itself, which means that there must be a cessation of campaigning before elections, went into effect at midnight. Despite this, over 20,000 people spent the night in Puerta del Sol, a public square in Madrid.

There has been no clashes between police and protesters and the government have indicated that they will not employ force to break up sit-ins and other demonstrations. There is an expected decline in voter turnout for the election on Sunday as part of the protest.