Apparently ex-mugger Yanukovich has won the Presidential election- exit polls have him 3-5 points ahead of Timoshenko, but there is a probability of fraud with election changes rammed through 4 days ago by Yanukovich's Party of Regions and signed by the President. She will fight like a banshee against the result in legal protests that could take months, and her forces control the Appeals Court (which was threatened in an occupation by POR MP's a week ago), but liberals are dispirited and exhausted by the feuding. Violence is possible. Yushchenko's reckless constant undercutting of Timoshenko, no matter what the damage to the country, appears to have given the country back to the oligarchs that control the POR, and to a lesser extent Russia, as dreams of European integration recede and Soviet-style corruption returns. This radio report explains why.
Radio Report (realplayer) new KIEV: Ukrainian voters are exhausted and disillusioned by the endless vicious battles between the big 3 candidates: President Yushchenko, PM Tymoshenko, and former PM Yanukovich, but after Presidential elections Jan17, one will soon be gone.- Yushchenko's support has plummeted to 5%. The top 2 will participate in the second round runoff in 3 weeks with Yanukovich (35%) leading Timoshenko (25%) by 10% in polls (#'s results), but neither has a chance of an outright majority victory today. Early fresh face former Speaker Yatseniuk (7%) faded with an atrocious advertising campaign, but newcomer Sergei Tigipko has surged to third (13%), and may parlay his showing into a Prime Ministership. Interviews of a dozen voters in Kiev + Mohyla Academy Political Science Professor Olexiy Haran.- Jan 17-18
