Spain's far right doubles seats in hung parliament, difficult talks ahead

Ballot boxes are seen in a polling station ahead of general election in Madrid, Spain November 9, 2019. REUTERS/Jon Nazca

MADRID (Reuters) - Spain's far-right Vox party more than doubled its number of lawmakers in the country's fourth national election in four years, which delivered a deeply fragmented parliament, setting the stage for very difficult government negotiations.

The Socialists of acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who had gambled that a repeat parliamentary election would strengthen his hand, finished first but with fewer seats than in the previous ballot in April and further away from a majority, the near-final official results showed.