Former parliament speaker Yevgeny Shevchuk has been elected president of Moldova’s breakaway Transdniester region.
Over 73 per cent of voters cast their ballots for Shevchuk, 43, in a second round run-off poll on December 25. On Monday, the Central Election Commission of the self-proclaimed republic announced the final results of the elections. Shevchuk’s rival, incumbent parliament speaker Anatoly Kaminsky, got the support of 19.6 per cent of voters, while over 4 per cent of the electorate voted against both candidates. The newly-elected president told journalists that he would take office before the end of the year. Shevchuk named strengthening ties with Moscow among the republic’s top foreign policy priorities.“Russia is a giant country, a peacekeeper-country that protects our citizens and provides aid to Transdniester. A key priority in my foreign policy will be building stronger ties with Russia, with which we plan to reach a higher level of cooperation,” he told Itar-Tass.