Australia elects Rudd prime minister

SYDNEY, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- Australian Prime Minister-elect Kevin Rudd vowed Saturday to put old battles aside and turn a new page in the country's governance.

Rudd defeated conservative Prime Minister John Howard, 68, who was seeking a fifth term after 11 years in office, The Australian reported.

Rudd, whose Labor Party won at least 22 seats from the ruling Liberal-National coalition, vowed to oversee a revolution in education, increased funding for hospitals, a focus on climate change and the installation of a world-class broadband network, The Australian reported.

"And I will always have my door open to men and women of good will who wish to make this country better," the 50-year-old former diplomat said in his acceptance speech.

Howard, in his concession speech, said he was saddened by his loss but wished Rudd good fortune and predicted Australia's best years lay ahead, The Australian reported. Howard, it appeared in preliminary counting, lost even his own seat in northwestern Sydney, a seat he had held for 33 years.