More than a third of Finns to vote early in election

Advance polling stations opened Wednesday in Finland ahead of next week`s general election dominated by the economy, with more than a third of Finns expected to vote early. 

Finland introduced early voting in 1970 and ahead of the April 19 election, more than 900 polling stations have been set up in shopping centres, post offices, libraries and hospitals as well as in regular polling venues such as town halls.

"We wanted as many voters as possible to vote and for turnout to be as high as possible," Finland`s election director Arto Jaaskelainen told AFP, adding that about 45 percent of votes are likely to be cast ahead of election day. 

After a three-year economic slump, Finland`s left-right coalition led by centre-right leader Alexander Stubb has fared badly in public opinion polls, which put the opposition Centre party ahead.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Stubb said his government -- originally made up of six of Finland`s eight political parties before two departed -- had been "bound by shackles coming from the left". 

The latest opinion poll from public broadcaster YLE on March 20 put the liberal-agrarian Centre party far ahead with 24.9 percent of the vote. 

Prime Minister Stubb`s National Coalition Party had 16.1 percent support while his leftist partners, the Social Democrats, had 16.2 percent. 

The populist eurosceptic Finns party had 14.6 percent, fuelling speculation that it could be invited into a new Centre-party led coalition. 

Almost 4.5 million Finns out of a population of 5.4 million are eligible to vote.