Spain to choose between Sanchez or return of the right

Spain votes Sun. on whether to give Socialist PM Pedro Sanchez a new 4-yr mandate or bring right-wing to power with far-right ally. It would be a huge blow for left-wing parties in Europe & symbolic as Spain holds EU presidency. Polls suggest victory for PP, but surprises could be in store. Record absentee ballots cast due to summer holidays & high undecided rate. Polls open/close 9am/8pm, results expected a few hrs later.

Spain votes Sunday on whether to hand Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez a fresh four-year mandate or, as polls suggest, bring the right back to power with its far-right ally.

Ahead of European elections in 2024, a shift to the right in the eurozone's fourth-largest economy, mirroring a similar move in Italy last year, would be a huge blow for left-wing parties in Europe.

It would be even more symbolic as Spain currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Union.

Nearly all polls and pundits suggest the vote will spell victory for Alberto Nunez Feijoo's right-wing Popular Party (PP) -- but surprises could be in store.

By the time the last surveys were published on Monday, around one in five voters were still undecided, and it remains unclear what impact the timing of the vote, held at the height of the summer holidays in the scorching late July heat, will have on the turnout.

As many Spaniards are on vacation, more than 2.47 million -- a record number -- of the 37.5 million registered voters have cast an absentee ballot, the Spanish Postal Service said on Saturday.

Polling stations open at 9:00 a.m. (0700 GMT) and close at 8:00 p.m., with the results expected a few hours later.