Early results in a close-run general election in Jamaica indicate that the opposition Labour party (JLP) is heading for a narrow victory.
Jamaica's opposition Labour Party (JLP) has won the general election, ending an 18-year reign by the People's National Party (PNP), preliminary results show.
Jamaica's main TV networks announced that the JLP had taken 31 of the 60 seats in the country's parliament.
The JLP, led by Bruce Golding, has taken 31 out of the 60 seats in parliament, election officials said.
The governing People's National Party (PNP), led by the island's first female prime minister, Portia Simpson Miller, has been in power for 18 years.
But Portia Simpson Miller, Jamaica's first woman Prime Minister, has not acknowledged defeat and indicated that the PNP would challenge the result.
Ms Simpson Miller has not yet conceded victory to the JLP.
Crime, poverty and high unemployment were the main issues in the campaign.
"The election is too close to call," she said, adding that the PNP candidates would be asking for recounts and could be filing legal challenges.
Jubilant JLP supporters took to the streets of the capital, Kingston, to celebrate their apparent win.
Few incidents
Hundreds gathered at the party's headquarters cheering wildly and chanting "Bruce, Bruce" as Mr Golding took to the stage to the strains of Bob Marley.
The voting itself was largely peaceful, but in south-east Saint Andrew, a poor area of the capital Kingston, shots were fired at a polling station from a car.
Portia Simpson Miller: Election too close to call
The Jamaican PM has not intention of admitting defeat yet
The JLP leader made a cautious speech, avoiding a claim of outright victory.
Police have arrested several men and seized the car they were driving.
"However perplexing some may find the results, the fact is that the people have spoken and we of the Jamaica Labour Party, we accept and respect the decision," said Mr Golding.
No one was injured, but frightened staff had to be persuaded to continue their work.
"At the moment, the Jamaica Labour Party commands a majority of seats in parliament," he said.
Some 1.3 million Jamaicans were eligible to vote.
He called for a transition of power in an orderly and peaceful manner.
One electoral official said that a few of more than 6,000 polling stations were still closed nearly an hour after the scheduled opening at 1300 GMT, the BBC's Orin Gordon in Kingston says.
But Mrs Simpson Miller, who has been in power for 18 months, said a number of races were so close that the results could change after a recount.
The official said it was due to technical difficulties and not any political trouble in those areas, our correspondent adds.
"The election is too close to call," she told supporters at the PNP's headquarters.
The vote had been planned for 27 August but was postponed after Hurricane Dean ravaged the Caribbean island.
"We are conceding no victory to the Jamaica Labour Party," she said, adding that there had been reports of irregularities.
Murder rate
The narrowness of the election result and the PNP's refusal to concede presents the Jamaican electoral authorities with a big challenge, says the BBC's Orin Gordon in Kingston.
JLP supporters are already celebrating
A recount needs to proceed swiftly to end all doubts about the result, he says.
The director of elections, Danville Walker, told Reuters news agency that a recount would begin on Tuesday and that the process would take two to three days.
About three constituencies were "closer than razor thin", he said.
The voting itself was largely peaceful, but in the St Andrews area of Kingston shots were fired at a polling station from a car.
The two main parties do not differ significantly in ideology. Analysts say voters may have been looking for a change to tackle Jamaica's deep-seated poverty, 9% unemployment and a murder rate that is among the highest in the world.
The election had been scheduled for 27 August but was postponed for a week after Hurricane Dean swept through the island, causing widespread damage.
Are you in Jamaica? Have you voted in the general election? How important is this poll for the country? Send us your comments and predictions using the form below.
Are you in Jamaica? Have you voted in the general election? How important is this poll for the country? Send us your comments and predictions using the form below.
