One of the leaders of the Europe Now Movement Jakov Milatovic he practically beat the main opponent in the first round of the election Andrija Mandić (DF), so in 14 days s Milo Đukanović fight for the presidential chair.
The leader of the DPS, however, will have a much smaller chance of retaining his position in that duel, if Milatović is supported by the voters of the Postavgustov majority - a party from which for years they have been saying that no alliance with the current president of the country is out of the question, which was announced last night by the presidential candidates of the DF- and the Democrats, who ended the presidential race. The post-August majority won 60 percent of the votes yesterday.
According to the preliminary results of the Center for Democratic Transition based on 100 percent of the processed sample, Đukanović won 35,3 percent of the votes, Milatović 28,9 percent, and Mandić 19 percent. Next is the Democratic candidate Aleksa Becic with 11,3 percent, SDP candidate Draginja Vuksanović Stanković with 3,2 percent, the candidate of United Montenegro Goran Danilović who won 1,5 percent and an independent candidate Jovan Radulović with 0,8 percent.
Đukanović, until yesterday the undisputed winner of all presidential elections in the first round, won, according to preliminary results, slightly more than 123 thousand votes, almost 60 thousand less than in 2018.
Milatović, an official of the party founded a year ago, received more than 102 thousand votes yesterday. His score is a percentage lower than that of Mandić and Bečić combined. With their support, he could become the first president of Montenegro who is not from DPS, and after the introduction of multi-party system more than 30 years ago.
The candidate of the Social Democratic Party experienced a collapse in the elections Draginja Vuksanović Stanković - from 27 support voters in 2018, it dropped to 11, which is a 60 percent drop.
542.154 voters had the right to vote in the first round of presidential elections, and 350.231, or 64 percent, voted.
Đukanović: We met our goal
Đukanović said last night that in the first round they achieved the planned results - they won over 120.000 votes, but also announced that they will win in the second round.
"I consider that a valuable result that fills me with satisfaction... There is a serious advantage over the other candidate, with whom I will compete in the second round," said Đukanović.
He also said that the results of yesterday's elections confirmed that Montenegro needs parliamentary elections.
Thanking the citizens, he said that it is up to him to preserve and improve the advantage in the next 14 days, when the second round of elections will be held:
"I don't have an opponent that I expected or wished for, whoever comes is weaker than me. I am ready to win whoever the opponent is... Whoever the opponent is, my strategy is identical. I am convinced that the arguments are on my side and that I can defeat this candidate as well".
Milatović: I will send Đukanović into retirement
Milatović assessed that yesterday's elections were won by all those discriminated against, who carried the torch of freedom for 30 years.
"We promised that we would succeed in the presidential elections - and we succeeded... This is a victory for all those who carried the torch of freedom for 30 years, those who were discriminated against, whose children lived on their bellies, who were poor. This is a victory for a more equal and fairer Montenegro," he said.
He thanked all the parties and lists that supported him and emphasized that this is "a victory for all of Montenegro, a victory that generations and generations have been waiting for."
He announced that on April 2, he will send Đukanović into political retirement.
He thanked everyone who, as he said, wanted a better and fairer Montenegro and said that he expects even stronger support in the second round.
When asked if he expects support from the diaspora, he replied that they want to build a better Montenegro with the diaspora:
"Every day, not only every four years, they look at them like Đukanović... Our greatest allies are the citizens and I am sure that together we will seal the new free Montenegro".
Mandić called on DF voters to support Milatović
Mandić announced last night that without the support of DF, there is no victory for "our colleague Milatović in the second round". He then called on all their voters to support one of the PES leaders on April 2.
"Tonight, on behalf of the DF, I give full support to Milatović and call on all citizens of Montenegro to support him. Our voters, every last one, to come out and vote for Milatović, regardless of whether he will respect our support".
Mandić said that Montenegro must take a new path, and that the policy of reconciliation can benefit every citizen. He thanked the Serbs, but also all other nations that accepted such a policy.
He emphasized that the hand of reconciliation was extended to all, Montenegrins, Bosniaks, Albanians, and Croats:
"The fact that we defended ourselves and were sharp at one time, no one should blame us".
He said that he believed that yesterday's vote ended the brutal campaign of those who claimed that DF and DPS were two sides of the same coin, but also assessed that some embassies "worked against us".
He reminded that extraordinary parliamentary elections will be held soon and said that he believes that in this context the citizens will value the fact that "DF will enable Milatović to be the president of Montenegro".
"I don't think he is the best candidate, but he is a candidate that the majority of Montenegro should stand behind. That is our duty and obligation. We have been fighting against Đukanović for 25 years. The fact that someone from the younger generation will formally change the government in Montenegro, i.e. to be president, it doesn't bother me in the least, because my main goal was for Đukanović to be removed from that position, because he is the symbol of division and everything bad in Montenegro... It makes me happy and all these people who were victims the torture of Milo Đukanović. When there are parliamentary elections, we will be the force that will dominantly influence the formation of the new government. A great victory was achieved tonight, that victory will be crowned with the support of the DF for Milatović, the future president of Montenegro. Let him be happy".
Bečić: We will not put pistons in the wheels
Bečić pointed out that the majority that won on August 30, 2020 won about 60 percent of the votes yesterday. He congratulated the citizens on the democratic election day, saying that free speech is one of the achievements of August 30.
He stated that the result of the Democrats shows that the party has a strong political body.
"We preserved our strength, even though we had much stronger competition," he said, adding that practically they "brought forth colleagues from Europe now."
He also congratulated Milatović on the achieved result, but also emphasized that the party bodies will decide on further steps regarding the support for that candidate.
"There is no better goal for us than to confirm that Đukanović has fallen tonight. Do not doubt that we will make the contribution that is expected of us, because we do not calculate, we are not here to put pistons in wheels. Our only political competitor is the one who ruled for 30 years... Don't worry, our hand is there... We are ready to make whatever sacrifice is necessary just for Montenegro to move forward".
Vuksanović Stanković announced her retirement from politics
Last night, Draginja Vuksanović Stanković announced her withdrawal from politics due to the poor election result.
At the press conference, she said that she resigned from all party positions, as well as from the post of MP in the Parliament of Montenegro.
"Everything I have done so far, I have done honestly for the benefit of all the citizens of Montenegro. I tried to contribute to the democracy of all processes and everything that happened. My further action will be that from the position of a professor at the Faculty of Law, I will continue to educate and educate generations, so that tomorrow they will contribute to the development and prosperity of, for me, the only state of Montenegro".
President of the SDP Rasko Konjević he said that for them the elections were over last night, and that after extensive consultations they will decide whether and whom they will support in the second round.
"Whether we will support someone in the second round - we will see, the dominant interest is not spectacular for us.
Milatović stronger than Đukanović in the central region
Milatović dominated in the central region, and Đukanović in the south of the country, the first preliminary results of CEMI show.
In the central part of the country, the PES candidate won 35,1 percent of the vote, Đukanović 31,9, and Mandić 17,4.
In the north, the DPS leader won 37,3 percent of the vote, Milatović 26,3, and Mandić 21,1.
In the south of the country, Đukanović achieved an almost identical result as in the north (37,6 percent), Milatović won 23,8 percent, and the DF leader 19,3 percent of the votes.
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