The Orange Revolution

A series of protests in Ukraine after a presidential election widely believed to have been rigged.

Background

The 2004 presidential campaign pitted the prime minister Viktor Yanukovych, backed by the outgoing president, against the opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko, who had been seriously poisoned during the campaign. Observers reported many irregularities.

Course of events

After the official run-off result on 21 November was announced in favour of Yanukovych, hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Kyiv's Independence Square, wearing orange, the opposition colour. On 3 December the Supreme Court annulled the result and ordered a new run-off.

Legacy

Yushchenko won the repeated vote on 26 December and took office in January 2005. The movement showed the power of peaceful mass protest, though many hoped-for reforms were not fully achieved.