Moderates expected to prevail in election

Moderate mainstream parties were expected to triumph in Portugal's general election Sunday, after more radical alternatives failed to exploit public discontent over austerity measures.

The center-right coalition government was close to re-election, opinion polls indicated, despite enacting tax increases and cutting pay, pensions and public services over the past four years.

Those policies were part of a eurozone plan to restore the 19-nation bloc's financial health following its debt crisis. The government has warned the country can't afford to go back to the borrow-and-spend programs of the past and must remain frugal till its debt load is lower.