Ukraine’s Orange Revolution Poised To Win Majority

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KIEV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s Orange Revolution allies made a strong combined showing in yesterday’s parliamentary elections and looked poised to win a majority that could unseat the prime minister and steer the country more firmly onto a pro-Western course, an exit poll showed.

The election was called early in an attempt to end a standoff between the prime minister, Viktor Yanukovych, and the president, Viktor Yushchenko, and shake sense into the ex-Soviet nation’s politics after years of infighting. The independent poll showed Mr. Yanukovych’s bloc was the top vote-getter with 35.2%, but Yulia Tymoshenko, the fiery Orange Revolution heroine, followed closely with 31.5%. Mr. Yushchenko’s party was trailing a distant third with 13.4%.

Ms. Tymoshenko, smiling triumphantly after the exit polls were announced, said she would meet with Mr. Yushchenko today to quickly formalize their new alliance. Their coalition could mend a rift in Orange Revolution forces that had thrown the nation into political turmoil.

“In one or two days we will announce the coalition,” Ms. Tymoshenko told reporters.

Mr. Yanukovych draws his support from the Russian-speaking East and South and is considered more Russia-friendly, though he has increasingly underlined his push for Ukraine’s integration into Europe.

The exit poll was conducted by a team of Ukraine’s three leading polling agencies and had a margin of error of 2 percentage points. Other exit polls had similar results. The vote — the fourth in three years — will either boost Ukraine’s hopes to integrate more closely into Europe or stir more infighting. Forging a coalition with Ms. Tymoshenko could take weeks of bargaining, and Mr. Yanukovych is unlikely to give up power easily.

Yuriy Lutsenko, the leader of Mr. Yushchenko’s party, said it was ready to back Ms. Tymoshenko as prime minister after the coalition is formed.

Ms. Tymoshenko, clad in immaculate white, pledged that the new government would push strongly for Ukraine to integrate more closely into Europe and quickly join the World Trade Organization.

At the same time, she said Ukraine would seek to develop good relations with Russia and hold talks shortly on imports of Russian gas and its transit to Europe.

“We will guarantee a balanced, harmonious relationship with Russia,” she said.

While Ms. Tymoshenko’s headquarters celebrated the results with champagne, a gloomy silence hung over Mr. Yanukovych’s campaign office.

A somber-looking Mr. Yanukovych made a brief statement in which he tried to present the results as his party’s victory, saying it would now start talks with potential coalition partners. However, exit polls suggested those parties, including the Communist Party, would not get enough seats to overcome an Orange alliance.


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