BUCHAREST, Romania, Nov. 17 (UPI) -- Opposition leader Klaus Iohannis, an ethnic German, has become the first member of an ethnic minority to win the presidency in Romania.
In what was considered a tight race, Iohannis upset his challenger, Prime Minister Victor Ponta, in the second round, winning the election with 54.5 percent of the vote. Ponta, who was ahead in the first round of voting two weeks ago, garnered 45.5 percent in the runoff.
Ponta conceded defeat Sunday night even before the partial results of the presidential election were announced while also maintaining he had "no reason to resign" his position as prime minister.
"Everything went phenomenally," Iohannis said of his win, announcing "another kind of Romania is beginning."
Iohannis ran on an anti-corruption platform in a country that is considered the poorest in the European Union and, according to the advocacy organization Transparency International, one of the EU's most corrupt members.
His victory has been attributed in part to the large number of expatriates, disillusioned by Ponta, who participated in the election. The first round of voting was beset with long lines and some were unable to cast their ballots, prompting protests in cities, including London and Paris.
