ROMANIANS elected the reformist, Mr Emil Constantinescu, President yesterday, throwing the veteran leader, Mr Ion Iliescu, out of office and ending the iron grip, former communists have held on power since the 1989 revolution.
Exit polls put Mr Constantinescu 7 to 8 per cent ahead of Mr Iliescu, who came to power in 1989 with the overthrow and execution of the dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu. Mr Iliescu conceded defeat without waiting for the official results.
"This is a victory for millions of Romanians who lived through years of repression and kept their faith for a better life," Mr Constantinescu told cheering campaign workers.
Many opposition figures accused former communists of hijacking the 1989 revolution to seize power. To them yesterday's victory was the final overthrow of Ceausescu's followers.
Tens of thousands of young people poured into Bucharest's University Square to celebrate. Mr Constantinescu told the roaring crowd: "You have made this place the starting point of democracy.
"Iliescu's gone," many chanted. Others popped champagne corks or jangled keys, the symbol of Mr Constantinescu's Democratic Convention group that will form the new government.
Mr Iliescu, who held several senior posts under Ceausescu, was contrite in defeat and pledged to form a constructive opposition. "The forces which have won must assume responsibility for tackling the profound problems of the country. I hope they will do it with professionalism and without vendetta," he said.