ROUNDUP: Ivan Gasparovic re-elected Slovakia's president

ROUNDUP: Ivan Gasparovic re-elected Slovakia's presidentBratislava  - Slovak President Ivan Gasparovic won re- election Saturday, in a popularity test for leftist Prime Minister Robert Fico, preliminary results showed.

Gasparovic, 68, emerged victorious with 55.5 per cent of the vote, defeating opposition candidate Iveta Radicova, 52, who followed with 44.4 per cent, the Slovak Statistics Office said as 99.9 per cent of polling stations finished counting votes early Sunday.

The run-off election brought 51.6 per cent of Slovaks to the polls, the statisticians said.

Gasparovic's re-election for another five-year term to the largely ceremonial office was a victory for the highly popular premier, who retained influence on key offices in the country.

"It is good when the premier, the parliament and the president get along," Gasparovic told reporters in a briefing televised on the TA3 news channel.

Fico said he was glad for being able "to rely on a president who has great welfare feelings" at the time of the economic crisis.

Gasparovic's triumph also amounted to yet another blow to the embattled right-wing opposition, which is unpopular for introducing belt-tightening pro-market reforms that kick-started the Slovak economy several years ago by attracting foreign investment.

Radicova congratulated the winner and put a brave face on her loss. "I want to assure you that I see citizens' support as a challenge, as a new beginning," she said.

Analyst say that Gasparovic, a former ally of Slovakia's post- communist authoritarian ex-premier Vladimir Meciar, represents his country's past.

He defended his seat with a campaign on nationalist and welfare issues that heavily relied on the greatly popular premier.

Radicova said her defeat was caused by "the clear support of the most popular politician in the country... on behalf of the president."

The Central Electoral Committee is to release official results on Sunday. (dpa)