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| Aznar's ruling party wins Madrid regional vote: official
MADRID, Oct 26 (AFP) - The ruling Popular Party of Spain's conservative Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar won a majority in Sunday's elections for the Madrid regional assembly, local officials said. Madrid Mayor Alberto Ruiz-Gallardon said that with almost 95 percent of ballots counted, Aznar's party had secured victory in the regional vote, with less than five months to go before legislative elections. Adaptive intelligence for a serious advantage: business, investment and technology- BizVantage! Aznar's conservatives won just over 48 percent of the ballot, securing 56 seats in the 111-member assembly, "a sufficient majority to govern," Ruiz-Gallardon said. The Socialist Party won just over 39 percent of the votes, picking up 46 seats, while the Communist Izquierda Unida pulled in the remaining nine seats. The Popular Party's victory was narrower than forecasts had predicted. More than 4.4 million people were eligible to vote in the elections held in the Madrid region, a long-time stronghold of Aznar, five months after initial polls were cancelled due to a corruption scandal. The region initially held polls on May 25, in which the Socialist Party and its Communist Izquierda Unida allies dealt a stinging blow to Aznar's ruling party when they won by a two-seat majority. But the socialists then failed to win a vote for the regional parliament's new speaker when two of its deputies did not show up. It was later revealed that the two had been taking bribes from property developers close to the Popular Party. The three parties in the regional government decided to hold the poll again amid reciprocal mudslinging and no clear majority. dt/lp/jah/kjm Spain-vote
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