Antonio Tajani elected European Parliament president

Antonio Tajani, of the European People's Party (EPP) Christian Democrat group, has been elected president of the European Parliament.

Mr Tajani defeated his socialist opponent Gianni Pittella after a day-long series of polls.

Before the first round of voting, the EPP, the largest group in the legislature, and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), the fourth-largest, announced a coalition that gave Mr Tajani a big early lead over the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) candidate Mr Pittella.

He maintained the lead through four rounds of voting.

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The battle among the two Italians was won by Mr Tajani by a vote of 351-282.

Mr Tajani's victory gives the Christian Democrats all the biggest jobs in the EU, with Donald Tusk as European Council president and Jean-Claude Juncker as European Commission chief.

PA