Montenegro votes in tense election testing long-ruling party

Voters in Montenegro on Sunday cast ballots in a tense election that is pitting the long-ruling pro-Western party against the opposition seeking closer ties with Serbia and Russia. The parliamentary vote is marked by a dispute over a law on religious rights that is staunchly opposed by the influential Serbian Orthodox Church. The issue has fueled divisions in the nation of 620,000 people that has defied traditional Slavic allies Belgrade and Moscow to become independent in 2006 and join NATO in 2017.