Comic leads Ukraine race for president

Early results in Ukraine’s presidential election showed a comedian with no political experience maintaining his strong lead against the incumbent in the first round, setting the stage for a presidential run-off in three weeks.

With nearly 80 per cent of the polling stations counted, Volodymyr Zelenskiy had 30 per cent support in Sunday’s vote, while president Petro Poroshenko was a distant second with about 16 per cent.

The strong showing for 41-year-old Zelenskiy reflects the public longing for a fresh leader who has no links to Ukraine’s political elite..