The Spanish government called general elections for March 9, formally launching yesterday what is shaping up as a close race between the ruling Socialists and opposition conservatives.
The Cabinet approved a decree at a special meeting, and Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero met later with King Juan Carlos to have the monarch formally sign it.
Zapatero is seeking a second term after being elected in March 2004 elections that ousted a conservative government devastated by the Madrid terror bombings by Muslim extremists. The attack killed 191 people and injured more than 1,800.
The new election date was announced last month by Zapatero. The formal campaign runs for two weeks before the poll, but the two parties have been campaigning for months.
Polls show the Socialists with a lead of 2-3 points over the conservative Popular Party, but statistically the parties are virtually in a dead heat.
Another poll released yesterday by the Instituto Opina also showed them statistically tied.
Despite the close race between the parties, Zapatero leads opposition leader Mariano Rajoy in terms of personal approval rating.
A survey published on January 4 in the newspaper El Mundo said Spaniards give him higher marks for leadership, foreign policy, social issues and others, although they prefer Rajoy for dealing with the armed Basque separatist group ETA and handling the economy.
In its favor, Zapatero's camp points to what it calls a strong economy, trailblazing social reforms such as gay marriage and changes that gave more self-rule to semiautonomous regions like Catalonia.
The conservatives are hammering away at Zapatero's failed effort to negotiate peace with ETA, which declared a cease-fire in 2006 only to revert to violence last year after failing to win concessions in talks with the government.
Spain's economy, for more than a decade one of the most vibrant in Europe, is cooling off, so the economy is also a big campaign issue.
Source: China Daily/Agencies
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