ANKARA -- Two Turkish legislators resigned Friday from their parties and one has died, again changing the makeup of Parliament ahead of a crucial vote on early elections, Anatolia reported.

Parliament convenes Monday to ratify a decision to hold polls on November 3, which Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit was forced to call after mass defections ended his Parliament majority.

A rift over basic EU norms lies at the core of the political turmoil in Ankara, along with the 77-year-old Ecevit's inability to fully carry out his duties owing to ill health.

On Friday, Ecevit's shaky three-party government lost another parliamentarian when a dissident from the far-right Nationalist Action Party (MHP) resigned to protest what Edip Ozbas called the party leadership's "responsibility and fault" in the country's governance.

The coalition now has only 270 of the 550 seats in the legislature.

The MHP, the biggest force in Parliament, is left with 126 seats.

Another resignation came from the new pro-European New Turkey Party of former foreign minister Ismail Cem, made up of deputies who defected from the DSP.

The party, which officially took up business on Monday, now has 61 seats.

A minor Islamist opposition party, Saadet (Felicity) Party, saw its parliamentary seats decrease to 47 when a legislator passed away Thursday after a long illness.

The party is poised to lose another seat as a deputy announced on Thursday that he had made his mind to quit Saadet and would hand in his resignation by Monday at the latest.

According to AFP, Ecevit has steadfastly refused bring polls forward from their schedule in April 2004, but gave in to pressure from his coalition partner last week after the mass defections.

The exodus was triggered by Ecevit's absence from most official duties because of ill health since May and a government deadlock over reforms required to advance Turkey's bid to become a European Union member.