Europe

Catalonia vote: Nationalist parties 'on course to win'

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Image captionPro-independence parties said they considered the vote a de facto referendum on independence

Exit polls in the Spanish region of Catalonia suggest pro-independence parties have won Sunday's elections.

The main separatist alliance "Junts per Si" (Together for Yes) is set to win 63-66 of the 135 seats, according to the poll for local broadcaster TV3.

The far-left separatist CUP looks set to secure 11-13 seats, the poll said.

"Junts per Si" and the CUP said before the vote that a majority would allow them to declare independence from Spain unilaterally within 18 months.

The central government in Madrid has pledged to block such moves in court.

Image copyrightReuters

The pro-independence parties have said they consider Sunday's vote a de facto referendum on independence from Spain.

They argue that the Spanish government has consistently refused to allow a legally recognised referendum to take place, ignoring an unofficial vote backing independence in November 2014.

Opinion polls suggest a majority of Catalans favour a referendum on independence but are evenly divided over whether they want to secede.

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'Nonsense'

Polling stations in the wealthy north-eastern province opened at 07:00 GMT and closed at 18:00 GMT.

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Media captionWhy these are not your average regional elections

More than five million people were eligible to vote.

The ruling Convergencia party of Catalan leader Artur Mas and the Esquerra Republicana party put up a single list of candidates - under the "Together for Yes" banner.

The anti-independence vote in Catalonia is split between a number of groups, including Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's Popular Party.

The centre-right government in Madrid has described any breakaway plans as "a nonsense".

Mr Rajoy argues that because the loss of Catalonia would affect all of Spain, the democratic approach would be for all of the country to vote in a referendum on Catalonia's future.