No clear majority in Spain's election with 50 pct of votes counted

Neither the rightist or the leftist political bloc in Spain was holding a clear majority in Sunday's national election, according to a ally of results from the interior ministry with 50 percent of votes counted. By party, the Socialists of Spain's outgoing Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez led with 126 seats in the 350-seat parliament, with far-left Unidas Podemos seen winning 42.

The right-wing mainstream conservative PP party was pegged at 66 seats, with centre-right Ciudadanos at 55 seats and far-right Vox at 23. The partial results, which in past Spanish elections have not always accurately reflected the final outcome, suggested neither bloc would be able to form a government on its own, and would need to ally with smaller regional parties to prevent a deadlocked parliament. (Reporting by Madrid bureau; writing by John Stonestreet, editing by Ingrid Melander)