Tymoshenko refuses to concede defeat in Ukraine

UKRAINE WAS facing a prolonged political crisis last night after prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko refused to concede defeat in a presidential election to opposition leader Viktor Yanukovich.

After months of bitter campaigning and mutual allegations of planned vote-rigging, exit polls predicted triumph for Mr Yanukovich with 48 to 50 per cent of votes against 45 to 46 per cent for Ms Tymoshenko.

With 11 per cent of votes tallied, official results gave Mr Yanukovich 52.2 per cent and Ms Tymoshenko 42.6 per cent of ballots, but the premier’s camp said its own “parallel count” put her in a narrow lead with 85 per cent of votes counted.

“I will do everything to ensure that citizens of Ukraine – irrespective of where in the country they live – feel comfortable and calm in a stable country,” said Mr Yanukovich, whose stronghold is in the industrial, largely Russian-speaking east and south of Ukraine.

He was humiliated in the Orange Revolution of winter 2004-5, when his fraudulent election “victory” was overturned by huge street protests that swept Ms Tymoshenko into power as premier alongside Viktor Yushchenko as president.

The pro-western leaders’ subsequent power struggle badly damaged their popularity, paralysed reforms and left Ukraine all but rudderless as the financial crisis devastated its economy, causing it to shrink by up to 15 per cent last year. Even after securing an €11 billion international emergency loan, the leaders’ squabbling forced lenders to suspend payment for several months.

Mr Yanukovich capitalised on their failings, and said last night that he would seek to oust Ms Tymoshenko (49) as soon as possible.

“She needs to prepare for resignation,” he said. “I will propose the candidacy of a prime minister with whom I would like to work.” Ms Tymoshenko – a one-time gas tycoon with a reputation for fiery rhetoric and political resilience – said she was not ready to give way to the former mechanic and regional governor who was twice jailed for theft and assault as a young man. “We are fighting for every single vote,” she told state television. “A single vote may determine the future of Ukraine. Any celebrations before the official results is manipulation.”

Oleksander Turchynov, the head of Ms Tymoshenko’s campaign team, accused Mr Yanukovich’s allies of using “criminal methods” including paying people to vote, organising multiple voting and even putting spikes on the road in pro-Tymoshenko areas to burst the tyres of people driving to polling stations.

He also claimed that an election official from Ms Tymoshenko’s party had died after being attacked at a provincial polling station. Other reports said the man had not been attacked but had died of a heart attack.

International election monitors are expected to deliver their verdict on the poll today, but Matyas Eorsi of the Council of Europe’s observer mission called the election “calm” and “professional”.

“We are 100 per cent sure that this election was legitimate,” he said yesterday. “All the international community, and even more important, the Ukrainian public can accept this result.” Before the ballot, Ms Tymoshenko accused Mr Yanukovich of preparing to rig the vote and even to use violence to seize power. She vowed to call mass demonstrations to oppose him, but made no immediate plea to her supporters to take to the streets last night.

Mr Yanukovich exploited disillusionment with Ms Tymoshenko and Mr Yushchenko to mount an extraordinary comeback after the Orange Revolution, when he was widely depicted as a bumbling puppet of the Kremlin, in thrall to the oligarchs that dominate industrial eastern Ukraine.

The stronghold of Ms Tymoshenko is western Ukraine, which borders Poland, Hungary and Slovakia and favours membership of the European Union while remaining suspicious of Russia, the huge neighbour that has traditionally dominated Ukraine.

Both candidates have sought to broaden their appeal in recent months, however. “Such a small gap means that there will be a serious fight for the final election results,” analyst Yuri Yakimenko of the Razumkov Centre said as votes were being counted.

“The margin is not convincing . . . so we await a long court battle.”