Serbian Reformists Celebrate Presidential Election Win

28/06/2004| IslamWeb

There was jubilation in the streets of Belgrade as supporters of pro-western politician Boris Tadic celebrated his victory in Serbia's presidential election. Analysts say it clears the path to a return to the European mainstream and a reform process begun four years ago with the ousting of President Slobodan Milosevic. Tadic, candidate of the centre-left Democratic Party, defeated hardline nationalist Tomislav Nikolic 53.7 percent of the vote to around 45 percent. He will be working with a centrist government led by conservative Prime Minister Vojislav Kustinca, a rival with a shaky minority coalition. But questions remain about how effectively the president and the coalition will be able to cooperate. Tadic said priorities would be to prepare a new constitution, join the EU and resolve the Kosovo problem, raise the standards of living and boost ties with Montenegro. "I'm a pro-European candidate, which means that I'm for new political values here and during the campaign we didn't do anything which would send the wrong message to our citizens and really believe that dirty campaigning belongs to the past," he said. Nikolic had tried to cool hardline rhetoric for the campaign but in a concession statement said Tadic "won thanks to the votes of ethnic minorities". Sunday's vote was Serbia's fourth bid to choose a head of state in two years. After ex-President Milan Milutinovic surrendered to the U.N. war crimes tribunal in late 2002, three subsequent elections failed due to low turnout, before that rule was scrapped. **PHOTO CAPTION*** Newly elected Serbian President Boris Tadic greets his supporters in Belgrade late June 27, 2004. (Reuters)