FACTBOX-Dominican Republic conducts election

May 11 (Reuters) - President Leonel Fernandez of the Dominican Republic is expected to win re-election on May 16 when the tourism-dependent Caribbean country goes to the polls.

Here are some facts about the Dominican Republic.

POPULATION: 9.5 million. Ethnically, mostly a mixture of European and African origin.

LANGUAGE: Spanish.

RELIGION: 95 percent Roman Catholic.

CAPITAL: Santo Domingo (population 2.25 million).

GEOGRAPHY: 18,800 square miles (48,690 square km) forming the eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, which it shares with Haiti.

GOVERNMENT: Constitutional republic with a president and a bicameral legislature, both of which serve four-year terms.

ARMED FORCES: Army - 20,000 active-duty personnel. Air Force - operates two main bases, one in the southern region near Santo Domingo and one in the northern region near Puerto Plata. Navy -- operates two major naval bases and maintains 12 operational vessels.