New Election Set in Ukraine

After two weeks of protests against Ukraine’s presidential election, the Ukraine Supreme Court ruled the election invalid. A new election run-off will be held on December 26.

The Supreme Court's decision was greeted with cheers from supporters of presidential candidate Viktor Yuschenko, who was declared the loser in the November 21 election. Calling the Supreme Court judges "real heroes," Yuschenko said, "Freedom and truth are returning to Ukraine following today’s decision." The judges met for five days before they made their final decision.

Since Ukraine's election on November 21, tens of thousands of people have flooded the streets of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. The crowds braved freezing temperatures to protest election results. Many wore orange to show support for Yuschenko. Meanwhile, in eastern Ukraine, rallies were staged to show support for, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, who was initially declared the winner.

The Ukraine is deeply divided over the election results. When the government declared Yanukovych the winner on November 21, supporters of Yuschenko took to the streets in protest. They said the election was tainted by fraud.

Election monitors recorded acts of harassment and intimidation at the polls. They also noted multiple voting by some people in addition to a strangely high voter turnout. In some areas, there were accusations of ballot boxes being burned. As a result, protesters remained in Kiev, hoping to overturn the election results.

This is the Ukraine's fourth presidential election since it became an independent country in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The election crisis has pitted the pro-Russia mostly Russian speaking eastern section against the Western-leaning mostly Ukrainian speaking rest of the country.