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Ukraine election a win for president and allies, early count suggests Ukraine election a win for president and allies, early count suggests
(about 14 hours later)
Two pro-European parties will dominate Ukraine’s new parliament, partial results from Sunday’s poll suggested on Monday morning, with the groups loyal to the president, Petro Poroshenko, and the prime minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, both winning over 21% of the vote each. Two pro-European parties will dominate Ukraine’s new parliament, results from Sunday’s poll suggested, with the groups loyal to the president, Petro Poroshenko, and the prime minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, each winning more than 21% of the vote.
Addressing the nation late on Sunday evening, Poroshenko said voters had backed “a democratic, reformist, pro-Ukrainian and pro-European majority” and said the vote would help end the crisis in the east of the country. Addressing the nation late on Sunday evening, Poroshenko said voters had backed “a democratic, reformist, pro-Ukrainian and pro-European majority” and that the vote would help end the crisis in the east of the country.
“The majority of voters were in favour of the political forces that support the president’s peace plan and seek a political solution to the situation in the Donbass,” said Poroshenko.“The majority of voters were in favour of the political forces that support the president’s peace plan and seek a political solution to the situation in the Donbass,” said Poroshenko.
With around a third of the votes counted, the central election commission gave Yatsenyuk’s People’s Front a vote share of 21.57%, fractionally ahead of Poroshenko’s bloc which was on 21.54%. With nearly two-thirds of the votes counted, the central election commission gave Yatsenyuk’s People’s Front a vote share of 21.58%, fractionally ahead of Poroshenko’s bloc, on 21.40%.
The result suggested that Poroshenko, a billionaire chocolate tycoon, would probably continue working in tandem with Yatsenyuk, who has been more hawkish on Russia than the president but is considered a safe pair of hands for the economy. The result suggest that Poroshenko, a billionaire chocolate tycoon, will probably continue working in tandem with Yatsenyuk, who has been more hawkish on Russia than the president but is considered a safe pair of hands for the economy.
A number of other parties cleared the 5% threshold required to enter parliament, including the Opposition Bloc, made up of allies of former president Viktor Yanukovych, which polled nearly 10% of the vote. Yanukovych fled the country in February after the Maidan revolution, setting off a chain of events that would see Crimea annexed by Russia and violent conflict break out in the east. Barack Obama accused Russia of sabotaging the vote with its annexation of Crimea and involvement in hostilities in east Ukraine.
Other parties that looked set to make it into parliament included the Fatherland party of former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, which secured just 6% of the vote, according to early results, and the Samopomich party, mainly made up of former Maidan activists. “It is clear that Russian authorities occupying Crimea, and Russian-backed separatists in parts of eastern Ukraine, prevented many Ukrainian citizens from exercising their democratic rights to participate in national elections and cast their votes,” the US president said.
The controversial Radical party of Oleh Lyashko, who has made a name for himself with his unorthodox and potentially illegal escapades in the conflict in the east, and whose party symbol is a pitchfork, also made it into parliament, but other nationalist and far-right parties appear to have failed.
The new parliament is likely to contain many former Maidan activists, along with investigative journalists, war veterans and members of volunteer battalions who had been on the party lists for a number of parties. The hope is that Ukrainian politics will finally turn a corner and shed the backroom deal-making and oligarchic control that have characterised it since independence.
In the east, polling stations did not open in the areas controlled by separatists, designated as new “people’s republics” of Donetsk and Luhansk.In the east, polling stations did not open in the areas controlled by separatists, designated as new “people’s republics” of Donetsk and Luhansk.
The conflict in the east has taken more than 3,000 lives, and Kiev has been forced to temporarily cede control over areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, a decision formalised by an agreement signed in Minsk last month between Russia, Ukraine and the breakaway entities. The breakaway statelets have said they will hold their own elections this coming Sunday, and vow they will never be part of Ukraine again. Russia has stopped short of recognising their independence, but is believed to have supplied financial, logistical and military support.
There was a conciliatory note from Russia on Monday morning, with the deputy foreign minister, Georgy Karasin, saying Moscow would recognise the result in the elections. Russia has called the Maidan revolution an armed coup and suggested that Ukraine is now a neo-fascist state, but there was a conciliatory note from Moscow on Monday morning, with the deputy foreign minister, Georgy Karasin, saying Russia would recognise the result in the elections.
“We are waiting for the official results, because there is a lot of contradictory information around, but it’s already clear that despite the harsh and dirty campaign, the elections are valid,” he said. “The balance of power that will come out of this will hopefully allow the Ukrainian leadership to seriously deal with the fundamental problems in society.”“We are waiting for the official results, because there is a lot of contradictory information around, but it’s already clear that despite the harsh and dirty campaign, the elections are valid,” he said. “The balance of power that will come out of this will hopefully allow the Ukrainian leadership to seriously deal with the fundamental problems in society.”
Kiev would argue that one of the most fundamental problems over the past few months has been Russia’s active support for the rebels in the east of the country, at key moments backing them up with regular Russian troops, something Russia has always denied despite mounting evidence to the contrary.Kiev would argue that one of the most fundamental problems over the past few months has been Russia’s active support for the rebels in the east of the country, at key moments backing them up with regular Russian troops, something Russia has always denied despite mounting evidence to the contrary.
The two breakaway statelets will hold their elections next weekend, and have insisted they will never again be part of Ukraine. Only 42% of people in Donetsk region and 26% in Luhansk were able to vote in the Ukrainian elections, according to an election watchdog, and voter turnout in those areas where polling stations did open was low. A number of other parties cleared the 5% threshold required to enter parliament, including the Opposition Bloc, made up of allies of the former president Viktor Yanukovych, which polled nearly 10% of the vote.
Yanukovych fled the country in February after the Maidan revolution, setting off a chain of events that would see Crimea annexed by Russia and violent conflict break out in the east.
Other parties that looked set to make it into parliament included the Fatherland party of former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, which secured just 6% of the vote, according to early results, and the Samopomich party, mainly made up of former Maidan activists.
The controversial Radical party of Oleh Lyashko, who has made a name for himself with his unorthodox and potentially illegal escapades in the conflict in the east, and whose party symbol is a pitchfork, also made it into parliament, but other nationalist and far-right parties appear to have failed.
The new parliament is likely to contain many former Maidan activists, along with investigative journalists, war veterans and members of volunteer battalions who had been on the party lists for a number of parties.
The hope is that Ukrainian politics will finally turn a corner and shed the backroom dealmaking and oligarchic control that have characterised it since independence.