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 15 May 2008 13:05 BST

Terrorism shadow hangs over another Spanish election

Sunday, 09 Mar 2008 11:28
Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, prime minister of Spain
Voting is underway in Spain's parliamentary elections, with left-wing prime minister Jose Luis Rodrigo Zapatero expected to narrowly cling to power.

Polls between his Sociality party and the right-wing Popular party (PP) had shown neck-and-neck results but Mr Zapatero appeared to have emerged with a slight advantage as voting began at 09:00 local time (08:00 GMT) this morning.

His rival, Mariano Rajoy, has attacked the government's policies of legalising gay marriage and making divorce easier, but it is Spain's faltering economy which is most likely to threaten the prime minister.

The global credit crunch has made no exception to Spain, which has seen a dramatic slowdown in its housing sector and is suffering from escalating inflation and high unemployment.

Terrorism, which unexpectedly helped Mr Zapatero to power in 2004 after the Madrid bombings, is also a big issue. The prime minister's failed negotiations with Basque separatist group Eta have proved an easy target for the opposition.

Focus on the issue has been sharpened once again by the murder of a former Basque socialist councillor, Isais Carrasco, on Friday.

Up for competition today are the 350 seats for Congress, the lower house, and 208 of the 264 in the Senate. The remaining 56 will be chosen indirectly by regional assemblies.

Polling stations close at 20:00 local time (19:00 GMT) this evening.End of story

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