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Italians take stock before poll

Rutelli and Berlusconi have fought a bitter campaign
Rutelli and Berlusconi have fought a bitter campaign  

ROME, Italy -- Italians are taking a break from a heated election with campaigning banned for the day before balloting.

Voting for a new parliament begins early on Sunday morning and ends later in the day. Projections on first returns are expected on Monday morning.

Silvio Berlusconi and Francesco Rutelli are each bidding to become the head of Italy's 59th government since World War II.

Opinion polls are banned in the last two weeks before voting, but the last few that were published indicated Rutelli had chipped away at some of the lead Berlusconi held at the campaign's start.

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Throughout much of the campaign Berlusconi, who has served as prime minister previously, has been subject to questions about possible conflicts of interest because of his vast holdings, including media outlets.

Berlusconi vows to reduce taxes and fight crime, while working on Rome's ties with Washington.

Meanwhile, Rutelli, a former mayor of Rome, is promising tax breaks, job development and anti-crime measures.

In an interview with CNN's Alessio Vinci, Rutelli said he was confident of victory. "I will win the elections. I will (create an) Italy, beloved all over the world for its beauty, history, art, but also for its technological, industrial capability. Italy will be an important partner and not a problem for Europe and the world.

"We are in a very close, tight race and we are going to win at the last lap."

He used the closing hours of the campaign to attack Berlusconi's choice of allies, including Umberto Bossi, whose withdrawal of loyalty in 1994 pulled down a previous government headed by Berlusconi after only seven months.

Rutelli also criticised Northern League leader Bossi for advocating devolution for Italy's northern regions, calling him an "an enemy of the south."

Berlusconi, whose media empire includes Italy's three main private TV networks, repeatedly refused Rutelli's invitation to debate, opting to make talk show appearances or give interviews on condition that crews from his networks do the filming.

Berlusconi's closing campaign TV appearance on one of his networks showed a blowup of an electoral "contract" he said he was signing with Italians. In the "contract," he pledged to reduce taxes and crime, raise pensions, create 1.5 million jobs and increase public works projects.

Berlusconi insists that since entering politics in 1994 he has put the running of his media empire into the hands of his son and daughter.

But he has promised to introduce legislation to deal with conflict-of-interest problems in the first months of his premiership, should he win.



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