Yushchenko claims victory, plus reax from Donetsk

(30 Dec 2004) NB: TRUE DATE CREATED = 27/12/2004
Kiev - 27 December, 2004
1. Media briefing on Ukraine''s latest voting results
2. Yaroslav Davydovych, the chairman of Ukraine''s Central Election Commission, entering briefing
3. Media
4. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Yaroslav Davydovych, chairman of Ukraine''s Central Election Commission:
"By 12 hours 50 minutes (1000GMT) 98.36 per cent was counted. Our database has registered 28,495,523 voters. In the result, 58.29 per cent or 14,902,779 electors voted for Viktor Andreevich Yushchenko, and 43.92 per cent for Viktor Fedorovich Yanukovich."
4. Digital map of Ukraine showing latest voting results
5. Davidovych on stage
6. Interior of briefing hall
Donetsk - 27 December 2004
7. Donetsk city square
8. Children riding on merry-go-round
9. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Lilia, city resident:
"Personally, I am not happy that Yushchenko is the winner. It seems to me that there could be some negative consequences for our region from his side. I don''t know how to say this but there might be repressions or something else bad for us."
9. Various shots of Donetsk street scenes
10. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Aleksandr, city resident:
"There is no tension here now but many will show their displeasure later, especially, pensioners and (war) veterans. They are extremely negative towards him (Yushchenko)."
11. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Elena, city resident:
"I am standing neither for Yushchenko nor for Yanukovich. Basically, they are the same. If it will be Yushchenko, things will not get better. But nothing good will happen with Yanukovich either."
12. Various shots of street scenes
STORYLINE:
With almost all of the votes counted on Monday in the latest round of Ukraine''s protracted presidential election, opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko has a narrow lead over his rival, prime minister Viktor Yanukovych.
Yaroslav Davydovych , the chairman of Ukraine''s Central Election Commission, said ballots counted by 12 p.m. (1000 GMT) from 98 per cent of the country''s precincts had Yushchenko ahead with 52.38 per cent of the votes.
Yanukovych had 43.83 per cent, Davidovych said.
Results were trickling in slowly from two regions in pro-Yanukovych territory in eastern Ukraine.
Some voters in the eastern city of Donetsk said they were not happy with Yushchenko''s victory.
Ukraine, a nation of 48 million people, is caught between the eastward-expanding European Union and NATO, and an increasingly assertive Russia, its former imperial and Soviet-era master.
Find out more about AP Archive: www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter: / ap_archive
Facebook: / aparchives ​​
Instagram: / apnews
You can license this story through AP Archive: www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...