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Opposition leads Slovenia's polls Opposition leads Slovenia's polls
(about 8 hours later)
Slovenia's opposition is holding a razor-thin lead over the ruling party of PM Janez Jansa, near-complete results from parliamentary polls show.Slovenia's opposition is holding a razor-thin lead over the ruling party of PM Janez Jansa, near-complete results from parliamentary polls show.
With 97% of the votes counted, the Social Democrats had 30.5% of the vote against 29.2% for the centre-right Slovenian Democrats, officials said. With 99% of the votes counted, the Social Democrats had 30.5% of the vote against 29.3% for the centre-right Slovenian Democrats, officials said.
But they said the vote was too close to predict the outcome. But a strong performance by the Social Democrats' allies gives the centre-left 43 seats in the 90-strong parliament.
Final results are due next week after votes cast abroad are counted.
Slovenia, the richest of the former Yugoslav states, is a member of the European Union and Nato.Slovenia, the richest of the former Yugoslav states, is a member of the European Union and Nato.
It was also the first east European state to adopt the Euro. It was also the first East European state to adopt euro.
Mr Jansa's party is claiming credit for the country's increased prosperity.Mr Jansa's party is claiming credit for the country's increased prosperity.
But the centre-right government has also frequently been accused of corruption.But the centre-right government has also frequently been accused of corruption.
Coalition allies Jansa's 'admission'
Earlier on Sunday, two separate exit polls gave the Social Democrats led by Borut Pahor a 4% lead over Mr Jansa's party. The Social Democrats led by Borut Pahor are now expected to get 29 seats in parliament, one more than Mr Jansa's party.
Mr Jansa is hoping to gain a new four-year mandateMr Jansa is hoping to gain a new four-year mandate
The outcome of the election may be determined by the performance of smaller parties which will be needed as coalition allies in the 90-seat parliament, the BBC's Nick Thorpe reports. Mr Pahor's main allies - Zares and the Liberal Democrats - received 9.4% and 5.19% of the vote respectively.
The exit polls suggested that two allies of the Social Democrats did well in the polls. The three parties look set to control about 43 seats in parliament - just three short of a majority.
While the economic policies of the two main parties are similar, a left-leaning government could be expected to focus more on the redistribution of wealth to poorer parts of society, our correspondent says. "This is a great achievement for us but we will still have to wait for the official final results by the [electoral] commission," Mr Pahor told reporters on Sunday.
Polls opened at 0500GMT and closed at 1700GMT. Some 1.7 million people were eligible to vote. Mr Jansa's allies fared badly in the polls, with one of the centre-right parties failing to reach the 4% threshold.
Mr Jansa admitted that the centre-left coalition had "more chance" of forming the next government.
While the economic policies of the two main parties are similar, a left-leaning government could be expected to focus more on the redistribution of wealth to poorer parts of society, the BBC's Nick Thorpe says.
Some 1.7 million people were eligible to vote.