Tainted election in Ukraine demands a new ballot

The fraud evident in Ukraine's election is so obvious and the reaction by supporters of the declared loser so vehement, that the only hope to preserve the nation is a new, transparent election.
Even that course of action is not without its perils, because Eastern provinces in which the declared winner's support was strongest are talking about secession if new elections are called.
The situation is reaching a crisis that will require Ukraine's political factions to agree on a new election and for strong support of that election from both Russia and the West. It may be time for President Bush to personally call his friend, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and prevail upon Putin to do the right thing.
Obviously, the status quo is not sustainable.
Some background
Victor Yanukovych, the current prime minister who had the support of Ukraine President Leonid Kuchma and the Kremlin, was declared the winner in a presidential run-off last week against Western-oriented Viktor Yushchenko.
In the first election on Oct. 31, Yushchenko, who was by all indications firmly in the lead, won a narrow victory. The Nov. 21 run-off election gave Yanukovych 49.6 percent of the vote and Yushchenko 46.6 percent. Putin declared Yanukovych the winner two days before the Election Commission announced the official results.
A British member of the European Parliament observer group said the turnout and results from certain districts favorable to Yanukovych could best be compared with elections in North Korea or in Iraq under Saddam Hussein.
Richard Lugar, head of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and an elections observer, said it was "apparent that there was a concerted and forceful program of election day fraud and abuse enacted with the leadership or cooperation of authorities."
Lugar joined other Western voices in calling for Kuchma to intervene.
Finally, Monday even Kuchma suggested that a new election was possible. And in a further sign of division in Yanukovych's camp, Serhiy Tyhypko resigned as his campaign chief and also stepped down as Central Bank chairman. That brought a warning from Kuchma that the country's financial system could collapse.
Mounting tensions
With tens of thousands of Yushchenko supporters remaining in the capital of Kiev vowing to hamstring government and with a growing movement in the Eastern provinces to align themselves with Russia rather than be part of a Western-leaning Ukraine, tensions are mounting.
It is time for Yanukovych and his patron, Putin, to join in the call for a new election.
If Putin balks, it will be more clear than ever that he is more interested in building a new Russia than in promoting Democratic republics. And, given the high premium that President Bush has placed on spreading Democracy throughout the world, it would be difficult to see how the president could do anything but react in the strongest possible terms.