In rich Norway, tight election is underway

Norwegians have begun voting in a tight election, as opinion polls show the country divided between the Labor-led coalition and the center-right opposition.

Voting began on Sunday and polling stations are due to at 9 pm on Monday, with exit polls expected to be released soon afterward.

Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg stands a fair chance of leading the world's second-richest nation for another four years, but opposition is also enjoying favorable odds with the promise of tax cuts, experts say.

"It's almost 50-50 if you look at the polls … The trend in the last few elections is that the sitting government loses some of its support even if they do fairly well," Bloomberg quoted Johannes Bergh, a political scientist at the Institute for Social Research in Oslo, as saying.

Stoltenberg, in power since 2005, has built his campaign on his success in guiding Norway through the economic crisis, a process that saw the 50-year-old and his partners -- the Socialist Left and the Center Party -- pump $420 billion of the national oil revenue into the economy to steer clear of the financial slump while ensuring the lowest unemployment rate in Europe.

If re-elected, the premier would be the first leader to enjoy another shot at power in 16 years.

Meanwhile, the splintered four-party opposition says Stoltenberg has failed to uproot poverty and improve healthcare.

In two out of five polls in the days leading to the vote, the opposition, led by the Progress Party and the Conservatives, had a majority of parliamentary seats.

The premier's main challenger, Progress Party leader Siv Jensen, has also vowed to cut down on immigration.