国际英语新闻：Social Democrat leader Geoana wins Romanian presidential run-off: exit polls

BUCHAREST, Dec. 6 (Xinhua) -- Social Democrat leader Mircea Geoana has won Romania's presidential run-off on Sunday, according to the first exit poll announced as voting ended at 9:00 p.m. ( 1900 GMT).

    Geoana captured 51.6 percent of the vote, while his rival, incumbent President Traian Basescu, trailed with around 48.4 percent, showed the exit poll conducted by the INSOMAR National Institute for Opinion Surveys and Marketing, aired by the Realitatea TV commercial channel. In the first round of the election in November 22, the differences between the INSOMAR exit poll estimates and the actual vote were some 0.5 percentage points.

Romanian Social Democrat leader Mircea Geoana (R) celebrates his victory with his wife at the Social Democratic Party's headquarters in Bucharest, capital of Romania, Dec. 6, 2009. Mircea Geoana has won Romania's presidential run-off on Sunday, according to the first exit poll announced as voting ended at 9:00 p.m. (1900 GMT). Geoana captured 51.6 percent of the vote, while his rival, incumbent President Traian Basescu, trailed with around 48.4 percent, showed the exit poll conducted by the INSOMAR National Institute for Opinion Surveys and Marketing, aired by the Realitatea TV commercial channel

The Company for Sociological Research and Branding (CCSB ) gave Geoana a 2.4-percent lead in the presidential run-off against Basescu, while CURS exit poll put the figure at 50.8 percent to 49.2 percent. A fourth poll, by CSOP, shows both candidates at a 50-50 tie.

    Basescu is endorsed by the ruling Democratic-Liberal Party, while Geoana is a candidate of the Social Democratic Party- Conservative Party Alliance, supported by other parliamentary oppositions, including the National Liberal Party and the Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania.

Romanian Social Democrat leader Mircea Geoana (C) celebrates his victory at the Social Democratic Party's headquarters in Bucharest, capital of Romania, Dec. 6, 2009.

"Ours is a victory for normality, it is the victory of Romanians who want a better life," Geoana said Sunday evening after exit-polls showed him winner of the presidential run-off, adding a new government led by Sibiu mayor Klaus Johannis will be set up in a few days.

    Basescu also claimed victory on Sunday evening, stressing that "I want to summarize the outcome of this election: we have won. We did it as we did back in 2004." He asked his voters to be patient until the votes have been counted.

    Geoana, former ambassador to the United States and ex-foreign minister, pocketed 31.15 percent of the vote in the first round of the election in November 22, 1.29 percent less than the incumbent president.

Romanian incumbent President Traian Basescu announces his winning in the presidential run-off at the Democratic-Liberal Party's headquarters in Bucharest, capital of Romania, Dec. 6, 2009. Basescu also claimed victory on Sunday evening, asking his voters to be patient until the votes have been counted while the first exit poll conducted by the INSOMAR National Institute for Opinion Surveys and Marketing showed Social Democrat leader Mircea Geoana has won a slim-lead over Basescu.

Romania has been in the hands of a caretaker government since mid-October, when its democrat liberal government was ousted in a non-confidence vote in parliament and Basescu failed to push through parliament his nominations for a new prime minister.

    The presidential run-off election on Sunday has been widely seen as crucial for Romania. The winner will have to move quickly to name the country's new prime minister and resolve a political crisis that has led international donors to postpone a massive aid package -- the third installment of a 20-billion-euro (29.65 billion U.S. dollar) bailout package led by the International Monetary Fund.