KIEV, Ukraine – Ukraine’s Supreme Court yesterday rejected losing presidential candidate Viktor Yanukovich’s appeal of last month’s repeat election, bringing the former Soviet republic a step closer to resolving its political crisis.

Mr. Yanukovich has not exhausted all of his options, however. His campaign has said that his main appeal would be filed with the court only after the Central Election Commission announces the final results of the December 26 vote. Preliminary results of the balloting showed opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko winning by a decisive margin. The three-judge panel unanimously threw out what Mr. Yanukovich’s team had called an “intermediate” appeal, which alleged mass fraud and had asked the court to invalidate voting in all of Ukraine’s 225 electoral districts. The panel said the appeal had no basis.

The appeal was a bid to overturn the commission’s unanimous refusal last week to consider a similar complaint. That complaint had focused on claims that at least 4.8 million people – mainly the disabled and sick – were deprived of their right to vote by election reforms introduced after the first runoff.

Additionally, Mr. Yanukovich complained about the alleged appearance of orange items – Mr. Yushchenko’s campaign color – in polling places, and problems with some voter lists.

Mr. Yanukovich has said openly he had little hope of success, but he vowed to press on with his fight against the latest results. His next appeal will aim to prove that massive fraud made it impossible to determine the winner of the vote – the same argument used by Mr. Yushchenko after the November 21 vote, which set off Ukraine’s political crisis.

International observers said they saw no evidence in the latest election of the mass vote-rigging that marred the earlier balloting.

Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians flooded the streets of the capital to protest what they called their stolen votes in November. The mass protests became known as the Orange Revolution and culminated in the Supreme Court agreeing with Mr. Yushchenko’s legal challenges, stripping Mr. Yanukovich of his victory and ordering the December 26 revote.

Many observers say it is doubtful that Mr. Yanukovich’s appeals will achieve the same success as he has been unable to summon the kind of popular support that Mr. Yushchenko used to press his demands. The Supreme Court also repeatedly has rejected these smaller claims launched by his campaign.