Portuguese voters have turned to the opposition Socialist Party to revive a faltering economy in a landslide general election victory, giving the country its fourth government in three years.
Official returns from Sunday's election show the Socialists won 120 seats, giving them an outright majority in Portugal's 230-member parliament. The victory marks the country's first parliamentary majority in more than a decade.
Prime Minister Pedro Santana Lopes' Social Democratic Party claimed nearly a third of the body's seats.
Former Environment Minister Jose Socrates, who is expected to take office next month as Portugal's new prime minister, has promised to restore confidence to the country. Unemployment reached a six-year high of 7.1 percent last year.
Mr. Socrates says he plans to institute a program of technological investment and training to create new jobs and boost economic growth.
Some information for this story provided by AFP and Reuters.
