Spanish local elections

MADRID - Spain's ruling Socialists and opposition conservatives both claimed victory in weekend local elections that were seen as primaries for next year's general elections.

With 100 percent of the vote counted, the ruling Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero's Socialist party had 34.9 percent against 35.6 percent for the right wing Popular Party led by Mariano Rajoy, a difference of 155,991 votes.

The Socialists, however, won 679 more town hall council seats than the Popular Party out of a total of 66,162 that were up for grabs.

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