Vilnius - Lithuania is set for a new politicsl landscape Monday after centre-right parties triumphed in the Baltic nation's general election on Sunday night.

According to preliminary results, the right-wing Homeland Union - Christian Democrats secured 44 seats in the country's 141-seat parliament, the Seimas, making it comfortably the largest party.

Added to that number in a new four-party ruling coalition will be 16 seats belonging to the Rising Nation Party, 11 seats of the Liberal Movement and a further 8 from the Liberal and Center Union.

Thus the coalition will control at least 79 seats with opposition parties able to muster a maximum of 62.

Vilnius - Lithuanians are voting in the second and final round of their 2008 general election on Sunday. Polls opened at 7 am and close at 8 pm.

Two weeks ago, the first round of voting in the largest of the Baltic states gave the opposition Homeland Union - Christian Democrats party a lead with 19.72 per cent of the vote and 18 members in the 141-seat parliament or Seimas.

Vilnius - Lithuanians return to the polls for the second round of voting in their 2008 general election Sunday 26 October.

Two weeks ago, the first round of voting in the Baltic nation gave the opposition Homeland Union - the Christian Democrats - a slight lead with 19.72 per cent of the vote which they are predicted to extend in Sunday's vote and gain a mandate to form the next government.

"We are ready to take responsibility and expect the president's offer to start forming a new cabinet," party leader Andrius Kubilius said after the first round. The conservative-leaning party is currently in opposition.

Vilnius - A referendum held in Lithuania to decide the future of the Baltic nation's only nuclear power plant has failed to attract the necessary number of voters to be judged valid, official sources said on Monday.

Lithuania agreed to close its Ignalina nuclear power plant by 2009 as part of its deal to join the European Union in 2004. A planned replacement, to be built jointly with Estonia, Latvia and Poland, is unlikely to be ready before 2015.

Politicians fear that a six-year energy gap would increase Lithuania's energy dependency on Russia and could ruin the national economy. Ignalina currently supplies around 70 per cent of Lithuania's electricity.

Vilnius - With most votes counted in the Lithuanian general election, the opposition Homeland Union - Lithuanian Christian Democrats party looks likely to be the largest single party in the next parliament.

Provisional results released by the Central Election Commission show the conservative Homeland Union took 17.87 per cent of the vote in the portion of the vote run under proportional representation (PR) rules, giving it 17 of the 70 parliamentary seats decided in this manner.

Voter turnout was better than predicted at around 48 per cent.

The performance of the election so far came from the second-placed Rising Nation Party with 14.88 percent of the vote and 14 seats from the PR vote.

Riga/Vilnius - Lithuanians are voting Sunday in an unusual double poll that includes a general election and a referendum on the future of the country's Soviet-era Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant.

Voting stations across the Baltic nation opened at 7 am (0400 GMT) local time and will close at 8 pm for some 2.7 million voters to decide the future composition of the parliament, the Seimas.

At total of 141 members of parliament will be returned using a combination of proportional representation and majority voting. The Seimas is elected for a four year term.

A further 71 MPs are elected by means of proportional representation from national party lists with the remainder fighting it out to win outright majorities in local constituencies.