BUCHAREST, Romania — Romania’s center-left government won a clear victory in Sunday’s parliamentary elections, according to exit polls. The result could inflame the personal rivalry between the nation’s top two officials and bring yet more political upheaval. The prime minister’s governing alliance had about 57 percent of seats in the 452-seat legislature, according to a poll published after elections on national television TVR. Coming in second was a center-right group, allied to President Traian Basescu, which polled over 18 percent. A populist party headed by a media tycoon won about 13 percent, according to the poll. First results are expected Monday. Basescu and Ponta are bitter rivals after the government tried to remove Basescu from office in an impeachment vote in July, a bid that failed as too few people voted to make the election valid. Basescu has indicated he won’t appoint the 40-year-old Ponta again, calling him a “compulsive liar” and saying he plagiarized his doctoral thesis. Ponta says Basescu is a divisive figure who overstepped his role as president by meddling in government business. As he voted, Basescu again accused the government of the former communist country of failing to devote itself to democratic reforms. He said Romania must continue its “path toward the West” and show the world it is “headed toward Brussels, not Moscow, and Washington, not Beijing.” For his part, Ponta said he remains committed to leading Romania to a better future. Many Romanians are fed up with the power struggle between the top two leaders, especially as the country remains one of the poorest and most corrupt members of the European Union. Romania is enduring deep austerity cuts in return for a €20 million ($26 million) bailout to help its foundering economy. Sunday’s vote was hampered by heavy snow and authorities asked the army and the defense ministry to help clear roads closed by blizzards. About 250 polling stations were prevented from opening on time, officials said. Turnout was more than 30 percent three hours before the polls closed.
ITALY -Never a man to let defeat – or scandal – keep him down, the disgraced former prime minister of Italy Silvio Berlusconi has anounced he will run once again for the country's top job.
With three colourful terms behind him, Berlusconi confirmed he would try for a fourth time to become premier, saying he was doing it out of "a sense of responsibility" days after his party withdrew its support for the technocrat government of the current prime minister, Mario Monti.
The media mogul told reporters he was running to win and that "the campaign is already on".
Monti took the loss of Berlusconi's support calmly, calling the situation "manageable", despite it increasing the likelihood of fresh elections. Although Italy's economy is still struggling, Monti is credited with calming the country's financial markets and rescuing it from financial disaster.
Monti, who is a life-appointed senator, has said he will not stand in next year's vote, but is willing to step in afterwards if the result is not clear.
The British betting firm Ladbrokes gave 3/1 odds on Berlusconi becoming the prime minister in 2013.
Berlusconi stepped down last year amid a severe debt crisis. Allegations of his involvement with an underage prostitute and reports that he hosted sex-filled "bunga-bunga" parties also clouded his premiership. He has since been convicted of tax fraud and faces low favourability ratings in the polls.
The three-time prime minister got his start selling vacuum cleaners and singing on cruise ships. In 1971, Berlusconi founded a local cable firm, Telemilano, which grew into the country's largest media company, Mediaset. He has since expanded his media empire to include Italy's largest publishing house, Mondadori, and the newspaper Il Giornale. Other business interests include owning the globally popular football club, AC Milan.
Berlusconi entered politics in 1993, forming his own party and naming it after an AC Milan chant used by fans, Forza Italia, which means "go Italy". He rose to power the next year, winning the elections, and went on over the next 14 years to win twice more and lose twice, both times to Romano Prodi.
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Romania's ruling party set for victory, exit polls show
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Romania's ruling coalition is headed for a landslide victory in the country's parliamentary elections, exit polls showed on Sunday. With official results due on Monday the Social Liberal Union looks set to win a two-thirds majority in parliament.
By FRANCE 24 (text)
Romania’s leftist governing Social Liberal Union (USL) won 54-57 percent of votes in a parliamentary election and is headed for a majority of seats, two exit polls showed on Sunday.
The electoral system, a mix of constituencies and proportionality, tends to reward larger parties and could give the USL even more seats in parliament than its percentage vote, analysts say.
The exit polls were conducted by pollsters GeoPOL and CSOP. Official results of the election are not expected before Monday morning.
Earlier in the day Prime Minister Victor Ponta's Social-Liberal Union (USL), in power since May, looked set to win between 48 and 61 percent of the ballot, according to pre-vote opinion polls.
That result would give the USL a two-thirds majority in the 470-member parliament, allowing it to pass through constitutional changes.
The Right Romania Alliance (ARD), close to Basescu's camp, trailed far behind, on 16-23 percent, according to the pre-election polls.
The election was Romania's first national vote since a failed attempt by the USL this summer to unseat centre-right Basescu - a move that drew sharp rebukes from the European Union (EU) and the United States.
Basescu, who narrowly escaped impeachment, hinted he could refuse to appoint Ponta, whom he called a "mythomaniac", as prime minister, even if the USL won the ballot.
Speaking before the results "We see another crisis looming", Jean-Michel de Waele, an Eastern Europe specialist at Brussels University, told AFP.
Investors and economic analysts said fresh political turbulence was the last thing Romania needed as the EU's second poorest member struggles to recover from a painful austerity drive.
Voting stations opened at 0700 local time (0500 GMT) and closed at 1900 GMT
Romania's governing USL claims victory "against Basescu regime" in parliamentary elections
de V.O. HotNews.ro
22:36 English | Top News
Leaders of Romania's governing Social Liberal Union (USL) including Social Democratic PM Victor Ponta Liberal Senate speaker Crin Antonescu claimed victory in the parliamentary elections today, with exit polls showing USL getting over 50% of the votes. They said it was a "victory against the [President Traian] Basescu's regime" and insisted that NATO and EU will remain the "cardinal directions" of Romanian foreign policy. Meanwhile, opposition ARD alliance said they trusted it will reach its 20% target - while reports claim some of ARD leaders might not even enter Parliament.
EXIT POLLS Governing Social Liberal Union gets over 50% of votes in Romania parliamentary elections
de V.O. HotNews.ro
21:04 English | Top News
Romania's governing Social Liberal Union (USL), formed of Social Democrats and Liberals, scored over 50% of votes in parliamentary elections on Sunday, according to exit polls presented by TV channels at 9 p.m. today. According to exit polls, USL scored between 54 and 58%; the opposition ARD alliance - between 19 and 21%; the populist Dan Diaconescu Popular Party (PPDD) - between 10 and 14%; the Hungarian Democrats (UDMR) - about 5%.
•The exit poll results are "affected" by a large number of voters who notably refused to tell poll operators whom they voted with, as one polling institute director has said.
EXIT POLLS Governing Social Liberal Union gets over 50% of votes in Romania parliamentary elections
de V.O. HotNews.ro
21:04 English | Top News
Romania's governing Social Liberal Union (USL), formed of Social Democrats and Liberals, scored over 50% of votes in parliamentary elections on Sunday, according to exit polls presented by TV channels at 9 p.m. today. According to exit polls, USL scored between 54 and 58%; the opposition ARD alliance - between 19 and 21%; the populist Dan Diaconescu Popular Party (PPDD) - between 10 and 14%; the Hungarian Democrats (UDMR) - about 5%.
•The exit poll results are "affected" by a large number of voters who notably refused to tell poll operators whom they voted with, as one polling institute director has said.
Leaders of Romania's governing Social Liberal Union (USL) including Social Democratic PM Victor Ponta Liberal Senate speaker Crin Antonescu claimed victory in the parliamentary elections today, with exit polls showing USL getting over 50% of the votes. They said it was a "victory against the [President Traian] Basescu's regime" and insisted that NATO and EU will remain the "cardinal directions" of Romanian foreign policy. Meanwhile, opposition ARD alliance said they trusted it will reach its 20% target - while reports claim some of ARD leaders might not even enter Parliament.
Romania's governing Social Liberal Union (USL), formed of Social Democrats and Liberals, scored over 50% of votes in parliamentary elections on Sunday, according to exit polls presented by TV channels at 9 p.m. today. According to exit polls, USL scored between 54 and 58%; the opposition ARD alliance - between 19 and 21%; the populist Dan Diaconescu Popular Party (PPDD) - between 10 and 14%; the Hungarian Democrats (UDMR) - about 5%.
•The exit poll results are "affected" by a large number of voters who notably refused to tell poll operators whom they voted with, as one polling institute director has said.
5/12: The 3rd European Parliament of Persons with Disabilities will gather
more than 450 delegates from disability organisations all around Europe.
They will meet in the European Parliament with European Parliament leaders,
MEPs and EU decision-makers to discuss how Europe can ensure the protection
of the rights of persons with disabilities in this time of crisis.
Find out more about the event on: http://bit.ly/V8qVd2
Watch EDF’s video on the event (with subtitles and sign language
interpretation): http://bit.ly/Rh51Tx
Vodafone has signed a strategic partnership with the UK government-backed GAVI Alliance to help use mobile phone technology to increase childhood vaccination levels in sub-Saharan Africa. With the rapid uptake of mobile phones in the developing world the initiative includes alerting mothers to the availability of vaccinations by text messages, enabling health workers to access health records and schedule appointments using phones and help remote health centres monitor stocks of medicines to ensure vaccinations are available when patients arrive.
More voices from Europe are urging Italy to press ahead with Prime Minister Mario Monti's reforms after he resigns.
Germany's foreign minister Guido Westerwelle said in a comment on the website of newspaper Spiegel:
Italy must not stand still after two-thirds of its reform process. That would bring new turmoil not only to Italy, but also to Europe.
Meanwhile, an executive board member of the European Central Bank, Joerg Asmussen, hailed Mr Monti's government for winning back investor confidence in an interview with newspaper Bild, saying:
Whoever governs Italy, a founding country of the EU, after the election must continue this course with the same level of determination.
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