Voting is underway in the Spanish region of Catalonia to elect a new government, in a litmus test of the independence movement legitimacy after its provocative attempt to break away from Spain.
Madrid called the snap regional election with the hope of having a new government to deal with after Catalonia's Parliament declared unilateral independence in October.
Spain was plunged into its worst political crisis in decades when the Catalan government held an illegal referendum on October 1 on independence, triggering a months-long standoff with Madrid.
Madrid responded to the Catalan government's provocations by firing the government, dissolving the region's Parliament and imposing direct rule.
Thursday's vote is being treated as a legal version of the referendum, and polls suggest it's on a knife-edge, with support for parties that are for and against independence split right down the middle.
Polls close at 8 p.m. (2 p.m. ET) and exit polls are expected shortly after.
Source : CNN
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