Riga/Vilnius - Lithuanians are voting Sunday in an unusual double poll that includes a general election and a referendum on the future of the country's Soviet-era Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant.

Voting stations across the Baltic nation opened at 7 am (0400 GMT) local time and will close at 8 pm for some 2.7 million voters to decide the future composition of the parliament, the Seimas.

At total of 141 members of parliament will be returned using a combination of proportional representation and majority voting. The Seimas is elected for a four year term.

A further 71 MPs are elected by means of proportional representation from national party lists with the remainder fighting it out to win outright majorities in local constituencies.

Harare - Attempts to settle Zimbabwe's political crisis appeared to be shattered Saturday after President Robert Mugabe allocated all the incoming power-sharing government's critical portfolios to his Zanu-PF party.

The move was denounced immediately by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party with whom Mugabe has been deadlocked over cabinet posts for nearly a month, as "unilateral."

Prague - A murky post-communist past of privatization deals and influence peddling is catching up with Czech politicians of all stripes as election season nears. But will it have an impact?

Late Thursday, a 55-year-old Prague hotelier fatally shot a 40-year-old businessman after what likely was a petty brawl at a posh downtown restaurant.

Remarkable enough in one of Europe's most charming capitals and a nation with little gun crime, the shooting reverberated because of its political connotation.

Vilnius - Lithuanians go to the polls Sunday to vote in a general election. But this year's campaign is proving to be very different from the ones that preceded it.

Where previous general elections have usually been boisterous, affairs featuring flamboyant politicians making often outrageous statements at colourful rallies, this year's campaign has been uncharacteristically calm.

New York, Oct. 10 : The “Trooper Gate” scam involving Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has the potential of unraveling and derailing the Republican Party’s bid for the White House, even as the Alaska State Legislature is expected to release its findings on whether or not Palin abused her power by having a state employee fired.

John McCain''s running mate has been made the subject of a legislative investigation into whether she abused her power as governor by firing her public safety commissioner Walter Monegan because he reportedly refused to fire Palin’s estranged brother-in-law Mike Wooten from the state police force.

Washington, Oct. 10: Democratic strategists are reportedly quite optimistic that the ongoing economic crisis in the United States will fetch a landslide victory for their presidential candidate Barack Obama.

Four large states John McCain once seemed well-positioned to win-Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio and Florida-have in recent weeks shifted toward Obama. If Obama were to win those four states-a scenario that would represent a remarkable turn of events-he would likely surpass 350 electoral votes, reports CBS.