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Montenegro Calls for Recount

A recount was demanded Monday by supporters of a unified Serbia and Montenegro. This took place with the backdrop of pro-independence Montenegrins celebrating victory in a vote for their republic to break away from its neighbor. Over half of the votes, 55.4 percent, with nearly all ballots counted, were in favor of dissolving Montenegro`s 88-year union with Serbia. Under rules set by the European Union, that is just over the 55 percent threshold needed to validate Sunday`s referendum.

The State Electoral Commission said 88 percent of Montenegro`s 485,000 voters cast ballots in the referendum - the highest turnout since the first democratic elections in the 1990s. The pro-Serb camp in Montenegro issued a statement saying the results `should be double-checked and ballots from all the polling stations should be recounted.`

Hours before the official results were announced, independence supporters flooded streets of the capital, Podgorica, and other towns, even though their victory did not appear certain at that point. `I congratulate you on your state,` said the pro-independence prime minister, Milo Djukanovic. `Today, the citizens of Montenegro voted to restore their statehood.`