Social Democrats win parliamentary elections in Romania

The center-left Social Democratic Party comfortably won the parliamentary elections in Romania, gaining over 45 percent of the vote, according to partial results released Monday by electoral authorities after over 82 percent of the ballots were counted.

Its main rival, the center-right Liberals, scored second with some 20 percent of the vote, said Marian Muhulet, deputy president of the Central Electoral Bureau.

Other parties that crossed the 5 percent threshold required for parliamentary seats were the Save Romania Union, the Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania, the Liberal Democratic Alliance and the People's Movement Party.

The results confirmed previous exit polls released late Sunday and would allow the center-left Social Democratic Party to form a coalition government in partnership with the Liberal Democratic Alliance.

source: Xinhua