Some 66,000 Romanian voters in Spain and some 500,000 Romanian voters in Italy were expected to take part in local polls across the two countries on Sunday. It was the first time Romanian people settled there legally were allowed to vote.

According to local media, the important Romanian communities in many regions across Italy and Spain may decide the result of votes in areas such as Turin or Valencia.

In Spain, various statistics put the number of potential Romanian voters at about 66,000 yesterday, with key votes expected in Madrid and Valencia.

In Italy, the voting process for the local elections is a bit more complicated as it is scheduled to last for several days. Some 500,000 Romanian citizens are expected to vote there. Eight Romanian citizens announced their candidacy for various offices on the lists of an Italian party.

The eight belong to the Romanian Identity Party, which has concluded an electoral accord with the UDEUR Popular Party.