Ukraine kicks off local elections

Millions of Ukrainians on Sunday began to cast their ballots in the country's local elections to elect mayors and members of regional councils.

More than 33,000 polling stations across the country were opened at 8:00 a.m. local time (0600 GMT) and will be closed at 8:00 p.m. (1800 GMT).

The elections are not held in the areas in Donetsk and Lugansk regions, controlled by independence-seeking insurgents, and the government-supervised territories near the frontline of the recent fighting.

These will be the sixth local elections held in Ukraine since its independence in 1991. This year a total of 142 political parties and 209,913 candidates are contesting in the polls, which is a record number.

Of the some 36.3 million eligible voters, nearly 60 percent are expected to vote in the elections.

The voting for deputies to regional, city and county-level assemblies is conducted under a proportional system and open party lists with a 5 percent election threshold.

The mayors of 358 cities and the heads of about 10,000 small towns and villages will be elected through the direct vote.

The voting is monitored by 1,554 international observers from 14 countries and 14 foreign organizations registered to supervise the process.

The current elections are seen as very important in the light of the ongoing decentralization reform, under which local authorities will be granted more economic, administrative and financial powers.

According to the Central Election Commission, the elections will cost Ukraine's budget around 52.2 million U.S. dollars.

The final results of the vote are expected within a week. Endi