Portugal election results: Social Democrats unseat governing Socialists (VIDEO)

Portugal’s center-right Social Democrats won an early election Sunday, defeating the governing Socialists in an election that focused on the nation's crippled economy.

The election is hoped to end months of political uncertainty that led to Portugal becoming the third euro zone nation to seek a bailout, Reuters reports.

The leader of the Social Democrats, Pedro Passos Coelho, is expected to become the new prime minister as part of a coalition government with the conservative Popular Party.

Passos Coelho vowed Sunday to honor the country's 78 billion euro ($114 billion) bailout deal with the European Union and International Monetary Fund, AFP reports.

"I want to guarantee to those who are watching us from abroad that Portugal does not intend to be a burden for the future to other countries that lent us the means that we needed today to face up to our responsibilities," he said after claiming victory, it states.

"We will do everything possible to honor the agreement established between the Portuguese state, the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, to regain the confidence of markets."

The Social Democrats won 105 seats in the 230-seat parliament. The Socialists captured 73, and the Popular Party won 24, the interior ministry announced.

International creditors are expected to welcome the clear cut result, the New York Times reports.

The Socialist leader, José Sócrates, had resigned in March when his austerity package was rejected by lawmakers. However, he stayed on as the head of a caretaker government that negotiated a bailout package with the EU and IMF.