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Poll puts Socialists ahead in race for Andalusian regional elections

Xinhua, February 14, 2015 Adjust font size:

An opinion poll published Friday gives the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) the lead ahead of next month's elections for the Autonomous Region of Andalusia.

The poll, compiled by the Center of Public Analysis and Political and Electoral Documentation of Andalusia between January 8 and 31, gives the PSOE 35.2 percent of the vote, a 6.1 percent lead over the Popular Party (PP), which took 29.1 percent of the vote.

Left wing party Podemos is currently the third force in Andalusia winning 14.1 percent of the vote, while the United Left (Izquierda Unida), who partner the PSOE in the current coalition government in Andalusia, saw their vote share drop to 8.4 percent.

Other parties such as the center-right groups Ciudadanos (Citizens) and Union Progress and Democracy (UPyD) gained 4.6 and 3.1 percent of the vote, respectively.

The poll shows PSOE has seen a slight slip in support from the previous regional poll, which gave them 36.9 percent in July 2014, while the PP have suffered more heavily, seeing their potential vote share fall from 36.17 percent.

Podemos have made the biggest gains given they were only credited with 6.56 percent of the vote share last July.

The elections in Andalusia have been brought forward by a year and will be held on March 22. They are the first of four elections to be held in Spain during 2015.

The last weekend in May sees local and regional elections, while September will see new elections for the Catalan Regional Parliament. The general election to decide the next government in Spain is scheduled for either November or late October.

Andalusia has traditionally been seen as a stronghold for the PSOE and is the Socialists' main power base in Spain. The region's reliance on the agricultural and tourist sector leaves it open to high levels of seasonal unemployment. Endit