Argentine primary to test president's clout

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina - Argentina's primary election on Sunday is expected to provide the clearest sign yet of whether President Cristina Fernandez will win a strong mandate in October to deepen her leftist policies.

Fernandez is expected to win a second term in the Oct 23 presidential election. But if she gets less than 40 percent of the primary vote, and if a strong challenger emerges to unite the opposition, the race could become more competitive.

The 58-year-old Peronist leader is popular, although she has infuriated farmers and grains exporters with interventionist policies meant to strengthen the hand of the state in Latin America's third-largest economy.