Opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko celebrated his apparently decisive triumph in Ukraine's protracted presidential contest Monday, thanking protesters who spent weeks camped out in the capital's frigid streets for securing his electoral victory and the nation's freedom. "Now, today, the Ukrainian people have won. I congratulate you," he told a jubilant crowd in Kiev's Independence Square, the center of massive protests following the Nov. 21 presidential runoff that was annulled after fraud allegations. "We have been independent for 14 years but we were not free," Yushchenko said. "Now we can say this is a thing of the past. Now we are facing an independent and free Ukraine." Three separate exit polls gave him a 15 to 20 percentage point lead over Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych. But the vote count gave Yushchenko a narrower lead: With ballots from over 97 percent of precincts counted by 11 a.m. (0900 GMT), Yushchenko was leading with 52.44 percent compared to Yanukovych's 43.77 percent. Results were trickling in slowly from two regions in pro-Yanukovych territory in eastern Ukraine. Central Election Commission chairman Yaroslav Davydovych appealed to election workers to do their jobs. "Put political issues aside. The state is waiting for results," he said.
