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Spain's Deficit Fight Risks Setback as Zapatero Bows Out of 2012 Election
Spain’s efforts to reduce its budget deficit and rebuild investor confidence may suffer a setback as Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero bows out of next year’s election. Zapatero, 50, said on April 2 he won’t seek a third four- year term, forcing his party to select a new candidate a year before March 2012 elections. The Socialists, which are trailing the opposition in opinion polls, will hold primaries after regional and local elections on May 22, Zapatero told party members in the capital Madrid. “It means he’s no longer a relevant figure, so I think this may be really problematic from a ... (full story)