Serbia votes for new leader, again
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The eyes are ripped off the posters showing Dragoljub Micunovic, who is expected to come out ahead in the poll.
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BELGRADE, Serbia-Montenegro (Reuters) -- Serbs have begun their third bid in 15 months to pick a president , in an election seen as a major test for ruling reformers ahead of early parliamentary elections next month.
Two attempts to elect a new head of state failed last year because turnout did not reach the required 50 percent. Opinion polls suggest the election may flop again because of an opposition boycott and widespread voter apathy.
Veteran pro-democracy politician Dragoljub Micunovic, the candidate of the ruling DOS coalition that ousted Slobodan Milosevic in 2000, is widely expected to come out ahead of hardline nationalist Tomislav Nikolic.
"It is my civic duty to vote and I want us to finally have a president," said teacher Svetozar Djordjevic, 55, one of the first to cast his ballot on a cold, clear Sunday morning.
The Balkan republic has been without an elected president since Milan Milutinovic surrendered to the U.N. war crimes tribunal after his five-year mandate expired last December, joining his former boss Milosevic in The Hague.
The two previous presidential elections -- the first since reformers ousted Milosevic after a decade of wars -- were held in September and December 2002. They were declared invalid after the voter turnout did not meet the threshold.
If 50 percent of the electorate takes part but no candidate wins a majority, a run-off will be held in two weeks. The president has the power to nominate a prime minister, promulgate laws and dissolve parliament at the government's request.
More elections
Sunday's vote came three days after speaker Natasa Micic called parliamentary elections for December 28, a year early.
Prime Minister Zoran Zivkovic, seeking a fresh mandate to push ahead with stalled reforms, lost his parliamentary majority earlier this month when a small party in the ruling coalition said it would vote against him in a no-confidence motion.
The West hopes the general election will help bring much-needed stability and give new momentum to crucial economic and political change in the heart of the volatile Balkans.
The government came to power after reformers toppled Milosevic in a popular uprising. But they later split and traded accusations of corruption and incompetence, holding up Western-style reforms in one of Europe's poorest states.
Many ordinary Serbs are disillusioned that their lives have not improved since Milosevic's overthrow, even though official statistics say living standards are better.
Some observers said the decision to hold an early election for the 250-seat assembly might increase turnout in Sunday's vote. A survey by the Institute for Social Sciences showed turnout might reach 52 percent, just above the threshold.
"We must have a head of state, as a family must have its head," said pensioner Marija, 64, voting in Belgrade.
Polling stations opened at 7 a.m. (0600 GMT) and close at 8 p.m. (1900 GMT), with 6.5 million people eligible to vote. Turnout and preliminary results are expected on Sunday evening.
Copyright 2003
Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
