Spain's governing Socialists were on Monday seeking the support of smaller parties after an election that left the country deeply divided politically. With 99.9 percent of the votes counted, Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero's party won 169 seats compared to 153 for Mariano Rajoy's conservative Partido Popular party.The Socialists picked up an extra six seats on the 2004 election but left the party seven short of a majority in the 350-seat parliament.
"A Second Opportunity," read the editorial headline in Monday's El Pais, which added that the Socialists "will have to continue counting on external support."
The Basque Nationalist Party, which won six seats, offered its support. "We hope to contribute to his (Zapatero's) government so that together we can find a definitive solution to the Basque Country's political problems," party president Inigo Urkullu told The Associated Press.
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