Toomas Hendrik Ilves, a social democrat member of the European parliament and former Estonian foreign minister, was elected Estonian president on Saturday after weeks of political wrangling, Reuters reported. Though the position is largely ceremonial, the appointment of the U.S.-educated Ilves is likely to reinforce the small Baltic EU member's pro-Western policies and its drive to adopt the euro currency. An electoral college of parliamentarians and local government representatives voted 174-162 for Ilves over incumbent Arnold Ruutel. Three previous rounds of voting in parliament on Aug. 29 failed when leftist parliamentarians staged a boycott, forcing the vote to be moved to the electoral college. Ilves begins his five-year term on Oct. 9, and will receive George W. Bush in November in the first visit to Estonia by a U.S. president. European leaders welcomed Ilves' election.
