22 April

A newcomer to Ukraine's political scene has declared victory in the country's presidential runoff after exit polls showed him with a strong lead, with the incumbent trailing far behind.

The run-off was held on Sunday as the term of President Petro Poroshenko expires. Vote-counting started at 8 p.m., local time, and is still continuing.

Speaking to supporters, comedian and actor Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he is yet to be formally confirmed as president, but wanted to thank his supporters for their backing.

Ukrainian research institutes released their exit polls shortly after vote-counting started.

They show that 73 percent of voters polled said they cast their ballots for Zelenskiy, while a mere 25 percent said they voted for Poroshenko.

With 40 percent of the vote counted, the central election commission said Zelenskiy gained 73.3 percent of the ballots, while Poroshenko got 24.4 percent.

NHK