The ongoing vote-count in Ukraine is aggravating the situation in the country by the hour. Julia Timoshenko, who was trailing behind Victor Yanukovich by 10%, has largely caught up with the frontrunner. According to the Central Elections Commission's latest reports, Yanukovich is leading Timoshenko by less than 3%. Although this is quite sufficient to proclaim Yanukovich a new leader, the electorate is almost evenly split, which means a new leader should be braced for coping with no end of problems.
Things would have been a lot simpler if Yanukovich had led his rival by some 20%. But a 2% to 3% margin will willy-nilly poison the atmosphere. According to the Voice of Russia correspondent in Kiev Svetlana Andreeva, the voters are now interested whether the losing party will stage mass protests, rather than who has actually won the election to become Ukraine's president.
Sociologists and monitors are certain that Ukraine is in for no revolution, since the people want calm, rather than demonstrations. But everyone points out that a future president will find it pretty difficult to sort out things. Actually in all of the country's regions it was either one or the other presidential contender who had a decisive advantage over their opponent. There wasn't a single region where the two would run neck and neck. As a result Ukraine is again split in two, as it was five years ago. Victor Yanukovich enjoyed greater support in the East, while Timoshenko, in the West of Ukraine. But then, Victor Yanukovich says he is prepared to tackle this kind of situation and will, as a national leader, take account of all voters.
Let me tell Timoshenko's supporters, as well as those who voted for the contenders who failed to make it to the run-off that I'll you're your votes into account, Yanukovich says. I'll try to pursue a policy that would win your confidence. Whatever part of Ukraine our citizens may be living in, they will feel comfortable. I will carry out the reforms that will make it possible to cope with the economic crisis shortly. We should be united to fight such plagues as poverty, irresponsibility and corruption.
Anyway, Ukraine and Ukrainians are in for several hard days, when the defeated party will try to prove their right to the presidential office. If people fail to take to the streets, then the losers will file suits, claiming vote rigging. Although, of course, chances to reverse the situation are minimal, says an international monitor Yaroslav Ternovsky, and elaborates.
The irregularities that we have registered and that are not even worth being commented on, Yaroslav Ternovsky says, give no grounds for declaring the election returns invalid. Conversely, we believe that the election has been held strictly in keeping with law and reflects the electoral preferences of Ukraine's residents.
International monitors have, for their part, reported no major irregularities that could affect the election results. Vote counting is going on, with the final returns to be made public in no less than a week's time.
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