STOCKHOLM:  Sweden`s centre-right government looked headed for a second term in office, according to early results from Sunday`s vote, while a far-right party will enter parliament for the first time.

Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt`s centre-right coalition won 48.8 percent of votes, beating the leftwing opposition led by Mona Sahlin, which took 43.7 percent, according to a tally of votes from more than 48 percent of electoral districts.

The far-right Sweden Democrats, headed by 31-year-old Jimmie Aakesson, easily passed the four-percent barrier for entering parliament, securing 6.2 percent of the vote, according to the preliminary results.

Based on these results, the government would not secure a majority of the 349 seats in parliament, which would hand the far-right the role of kingmaker or spoiler.

Reinfeldt`s coalition would win 172 seats, compared to 156 for the left and 21 for the far-right, the preliminary results showed.

Even with a handful of parliamentary seats, observers have cautioned the far-right party could force Reinfeldt to seek new alliances or even make it so difficult to govern that new elections would need to be called.

A projection presented by Swedish public television just before 10 pm (0800 GMT) however suggested the government would just barely secure the 175 seats needed for a clear majority.

BDST: 0925 HRS, September, 2010