YUGOSLAVIA: SERBS VOTE OVERWHELMINGLY TO SWEEP SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC'S PARTY OUT OF GOVERNMENT ACCORDING TO LOCAL ELECTION MONITORS

Record ID: 328716

  • Title: YUGOSLAVIA: SERBS VOTE OVERWHELMINGLY TO SWEEP SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC'S PARTY OUT OF GOVERNMENT ACCORDING TO LOCAL ELECTION MONITORS
  • Date: 24th December 2000
  • Summary: BELGRADE, YUGOSLAVIA (DECEMBER 23,2000) (REUTERS) 1. SLV/MV BELGRADE STREET SCENES (NIGHT) (4 SHOTS) 0.16 2. SLV NEWS CONFERENCE HELD BY THE CENTRE FOR FREE ELECTIONS AND DEMOCRACY (CESID) IN THE BELGRADE MEDIA CENTRE 0.20 3. SOUNDBITE (Serbian) MARKO BLAGOJEVIC,CESID SPOKESMAN, SPEAKING SAYING " The final projection is that the turnout for the whole Serbia was FIFTY EIGHT, SEVEN PER CENT". 0.38 4. SLV PRESS CONFERENCE 0.45 5. SLV NEWS CONFERENCE HELD BY THE SERBIAN SOCIALIST PARTY 0.51 6. SOUNDBITE (Serbian) ZORAN ANDJELKOVIC, SPS SECRETARY GENERAL, SPEAKING SAYING "The ones who wanted to remove SPS from the political map have proven wrong because SPS will have around twenty mandates as it expected". 1.18 7. SLV CEDOMIR JOVANOVIC, HEAD OF THE DOS ELECTORAL HEADQUARTERS ENTERING THE NEWS CONFERENCE HELD IN THE CITY HALL 1.22 8. SOUNDBITE (Serbian) CEDOMIR JOVANOVIC, HEAD OF THE DOS ELECTORAL HEADQUARTERS, SPEAKING SAYING "According to results we have now, DOS will comfortably win. This a great day for Serbia and something that generations were waiting for and we are congratulating all citizens for what they did". 1.40 9. SCU HUGE VIDEO SCREEN SHOWING DOS SYMBOL 1.46 10. SOUNDBITE (English) ZORAN DJINDJIC, LEADER OF THE SERBIAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY AND DOS CANDIDATE FOR THE SERBIAN PRIME MINISTER "We have to finish the job from September. The majority does see this elections as continuation of the reforms and what is important is to reform the economy. We will win the elections but than we will have that important job to do". 2.31 11. SLV/SCU DOS MEMBERS IN THE CITY HALL MONITORING INCOMING RESULTS (3 SHOTS) 2.43 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 8th January 2001 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: BELGRADE, YUGOSLAVIA
  • City:
  • Country: Yugoslavia
  • Reuters ID: LVA76LGUJF2RS9CCU3ESY3Q4UQ2B
  • Story Text: Serbs voted overwhelmingly on Saturday (December 23) to
    sweep Slobodan Milosevics party out of government, depriving
    it of its last major lever of power, according to a
    projection by local election monitors.

    The projection, based on a representative sample of
    polling stations, gave the reform alliance backing new
    Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica 64.3 percent of the vote
    with Milosevics long-mighty Socialists winning just 13.3
    percent.

    The forecast, by Belgrades Centre for Free Elections and
    Democracy (CESID), backed up opinion polls which had predicted
    another win for the reformers who defeated Milosevic in
    federal elections in September and forced him out with a mass
    uprising.

    If the projection is confirmed, the reformers will have a
    sweeping mandate in Serbia, the dominant republic in the
    Yugoslav federation, which has been left in a tatters by a
    decade under Milosevic of war, isolation and corruption.

    But the projection also showed the continuing appeal of
    Serbian nationalism, with a party founded by slain Serb
    warlord Arkan standing a chance of entering parliament with
    5.7 percent of the vote -- above the required five percent.

    A top pollster said the projection should prove accurate
    for the main parties, while the figures for Arkans Party of
    Serbian unity could still fluctuate.

    But according to a theoretical model, they can not lose
    their parliament seats, Srdjan Bogosavljevic told Reuters.

    The forecast gave the ultra-nationalist Radical Party 8.6
    percent of the vote and the Serbian Renewal Movement,
    previously a leading anti-Milosevic party, just 3.5 percent.

    Kostunica and his allies have been active at federal level
    renewing Yugoslavia's ties with the world but they knew their
    ability to affect Serbs daily lives would be severely limited
    until they also captured the powerful Serbian government.

    The government runs much of economic and financial policy
    and has control over Serbias estimated 85,000-strong police
    force, a feared instrument of the state under Milosevic.

    The reformers had been confident for weeks of forming the
    first Serbian government not led by the Socialists or their
    communist predecessors since World War Two.

    I think that the main thing starts after the election,
    which means introduction of reforms, raising the populations
    living standard and creation of conditions for normal life in
    this country, said Zoran Djindic, the reformers candidate for
    prime minister.

    Voting for the 250 members of Serbias parliament ran from
    7 a.m. (0600 GMT) until 8 p.m. (1900 GMT) on a cold, clear
    day.

    Around 6.5 million people were eligible to cast a ballot.

    Results filtered in through from the more than 8,000 polling
    stations throughout the night and official figures were not
    expected until Monday at the earliest.

    The local monitors said turnout was a lower than
    anticipated 58.7 percent, based on their forecast. The figure
    was also much lower than Septembers historic federal election.

    Analysts had predicted turnout would be lower than in
    September as the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS)
    alliance backing Kostunica was so widely expected to win
    easily.

    The new rulers face tough challenges, to stem economic
    collapse, stop Kosovo violence spreading into Serbia proper,
    deal with war crimes and demands for Milosevic to face an
    international trial, and preventing the breakaway of estranged
    small republic Montenegro from the Yugoslav federation.


  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register