Georgia's rebel region of South Ossetia has massively reaffirmed its independence, a top election official said on Monday after a referendum on Sunday.
"I can only say there has been a victory for (South Ossetian President Eduard) Kokoity and more than 90 percent of the people have voted in favour of independence for our republic," Bella Pliyeva, head of the election commission, said.
The vote is seen as illegal in the West and there were no Western monitors present at the poll, but Russia says it should be respected.
Set on the Russian border in the Caucasus mountain foothills, South Ossetia broke away after a 1991-92 war that killed hundreds and forced tens of thousands to flee.
But amid increased tensions within Georgia, whose pro-Western President Mikhail Saakashvili wants to recover control of the region, voters went to the polls to re-affirm their independence drive and elect a regional leader.
Election officials said more than 90 percent of some 55,000 eligible voters turned out for the polls. They promised to give first election results later this morning.
"Of course everyone voted for him (Kokoity). In the past five years a lot has changed in our republic. We now have steady pay, light, gas and water," Inna Guchnazova, a 30-year-old mother of two, said.