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Spain's general elections kick off

The elections will determine 350 members of the Congress of Deputies and 208 senators

MADRID, July 23. /TASS/. Voting in Spain's early parliamentary elections began on Sunday. Polling stations opened at 9:00 a.m. local time (10:00 a.m. Moscow time) and will close at 8:00 p.m. (9:00 p.m. Moscow time).

The elections will determine 350 members of the Congress of Deputies (lower house) and 208 senators. More than 37 million Spaniards, including about 2 million living abroad, are eligible to vote.

According to the Spanish Interior Ministry, more than 90,000 law enforcement officials will ensure order on election day. The preliminary vote count will begin almost immediately after the polls close.

The election was originally scheduled for the end of the year, but in late May, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced the decision to hold an early election. The head of government made the move after the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, of which he is the leader, performed poorly in regional and local elections.

According to polls, no party is likely to win an outright majority in the 350-seat Congress of Deputies to independently approve its candidate for prime minister. This means that following the election results, a process of negotiation, will begin to seek support and possibly form a coalition government.

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