Viktor Yanukovych, leader of the Party of the Regions and seen as pro-Moscow, has defeated prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko in the February 7 2010 second round of presidential elections in Ukraine, according to various exit polls, media reports from Kyiv said.
 
Russian news agency Itar-TASS said that the Research and Branding Group exit poll gave Yanukovych 50.26 per cent and Tymoshenko 44.3 per cent.
 
Exit polls gave Yanukovych a three to six point lead, the BBC said.
 
The National Exit Poll, a consortium partly funded by Western embassies, said Yanukovych had secured 48.7 per cent of the vote against Tymoshenko's 45.5 per cent. Another exit poll, by ICTV, said he took 49.8 per cent of the vote against her 45.2 per cent, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty said.
 
Incumbent president Viktor Yushchenko lost in the first round.
 
If confirmed, it would be a remarkable comeback for Yanukovych, who was swept aside five years ago by the peaceful "Orange Revolution", RFE said.
 
However, the Tymoshenko camp said that it was too early to concede and irregularities could not be ruled out.
 
Russia’s RIA Novosti quoted the head of the delegation of observers from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe as saying that the elections had been transparent and the loser should accept the result.
 
Tymoshenko earlier vowed to call her supporters to the streets if voting appeared fraudulent. Each side has accused the other of electoral fraud.
 
"If they succeed in perverting the election results through large-scale uncontrolled falsifications, then the legitimacy of that president will not be recognized by Ukraine or by the international community," she said, as quoted by CNN.
 
The Voice of America said that the presidential vote in Ukraine opened on February 7 amid uncertainty over the election laws.
 
Distrust between Tymoshenko and Yanukovych had led to doubts about the electoral process.
 
Four days before the second round, Yanukovych's party managed to pass a controversial amendment to Ukraine's election law.
 
The measure allows a local election precinct to open even if it lacks a quorum of commission members representing both candidates.
 
The campaign has been marked by smears and there are fears that supporters of the loser could protest on the street, VOA said.