Triumphant Zapatero held back from power

Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, despite heading the party elected by most Spaniards, is unlikely to take power before Easter. He is unable to announce any government initiative until he has been formally invested by both houses of parliament.

Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, despite heading the party elected by most Spaniards, is unlikely to take power before Easter. He is unable to announce any government initiative until he has been formally invested by both houses of parliament.

In the meantime, ministers of the defeated government of the outgoing prime minister Jose Maria Aznar, who implemented policies spurned by Spanish voters in the election on Sunday, remain in office.

Angel Acebes, who proclaimed against all evidence that Eta separatists were responsible for Thursday's bomb blasts, continues as acting Interior Minister. Ana Palacio, who instructed Spain's ambassadors to take every opportunity to blame Eta, is running foreign affairs. And Federico Trillo, who sent Spain's troops to war, remains in charge of defence.

But there is no question of Mr Aznar's lame-duck ministers trying to wield back-door influence, Camilo Valdecantos, the parliamentary correspondent of El Pais newspaper, said. "They can only carry out administrative functions," he said. "They cannot take any political initiative." This drawn out process is supposed to guarantee the legitimacy of the handover, to ensure all the procedures are correctly followed and to ensure stability, Mr Valdecantos said.

Spain's new parliament convenes on 2 April. King Juan Carlos then meets the party leaders, a process likely to last several days, and only then will parliament convene to elect its president, who will be Prime Minister of Spain.