(ANSA) - TRIESTE - Hundreds of residents in Trieste have been voting since early Sunday morning to decide which drawing out of the five candidates will then be transformed into the statue that will feature the (still) beloved Maria Theresa, Empress of Austria. The statue will be erected in the city center. The polling station - from 10 am to 7 pm - was set up in Palazzo Leo, home to the Museum of Oriental Art in the Cavana downtown district, where the citizens have uninterruptedly queued for a long time in order to vote. A vote which is taken seriously and has nothing on the local and general elections. A committee for the monument was set up and municipal officials check identity cards because only the residents in the city (or in the province) are entitled to vote. Even the Archduchess of Austria, Gabriela of Habsburg-Lorraine, who visited the Museum and expressed her appreciation for the initiative, would have liked to vote, but since she is an Austrian citizen and resident, her request could not be accepted. The count of the votes will begin immediately after the closure of polling stations, but the results will be announced by the Committee on Monday, during a press conference.

(ANSA).