A tight race with unpredictable results...

Ukraine, torn between traditional ties with Russia and a post-Soviet drive westward, is deciding its new identity five years after the pro-Western Orange revolution.

According to preliminary results from the country"s Central Election Commission, with 80.27% of the votes counted, Yanukovych garnered 35.76% of the vote, and Tymoshenko came second with 24.72%.

Yanukovych, 59, enjoys support in the mainly Russian-speaking eastern regions. Tymoshenko, 49, a leader of the "orange revolution" protests amid election fraud accusations against Yanukovych, is popular in the country"s west.

The two frontrunners are followed by banker Serhiy Tyhypko with 13.05% of the votes, ex-parliament speaker Arseniy Yatsenyuk who secured 6.96% and the country"s incumbent President Viktor Yushchenko trailing with 5.33%.

On Monday night, television program Shuster Live published the results of a survey by Ukrainian Research&Branding Group, predicting the support of 44.37% for

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