Norway ? Norway was poised for a power shift after the left-leaning opposition won a majority of seats in Parliament with pledges to spend more of the nation’s vast oil wealth on welfare, official election results showed early today.

With more than 96 percent of votes counted, a three-party coalition led by the Labor party had grabbed 88 seats in the 169-seat assembly, enough to oust the center-right government.

Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik, who campaigned on promises of tax cuts, said if the final tally confirmed the result, his government would resign after presenting its draft 2006 budget on Oct. 14.

Labor leader Jens Stoltenberg, who campaigned on a pledge to spend more of the nation’s oil money on welfare, said the opposition Red-Green alliance would start talks in the next few days on forming a coalition majority government.

“In this campaign we had two goals: a strong election for Labor and a chance to form a majority government. The one goal has been reached, the other is within reach,” said Stoltenberg, a 46-year-old former prime minister.