Montenegro: 'mountain men' elect chief

Beautiful multiethnic Montenegro, best known for its Adriatic coastline, mountain lakes and fast-flowing river gorges, on Sunday holds a presidential election that is overshadowed by neighbouring Kosovo's declaration of independence (UDI). 

Filip Vujanovic of the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) seeks another five-year term.  If he can win 50% of the vote, he will avoid a second round a fortnight later. In previous elections, Montenegro's minorities have backed the DPS.  In the 2003 census, 43% of the 620,000 population were Montenegrin, 32% Serb, 8% Bosniak (Muslim) and 5% Albanian, with smaller numbers of Roma, Croats and others. 

Andrija Mandic is standing for the Serb List.  His support has hardened since Kosovo's UDI, pushing Nebojsa Medojevic of the Movement for Change (PzP) into third place in opinion polls.  The PzP is a broad-based opposition movement focusing on misgovernment by the entrenched DPS of Montenegro's long-time leader, Milo Djukanovic, who returned to the premiership a month ago after briefly retiring into business.  Minority politicians have expressed disillusion with the DPS, but in a second-round contest between Vujanovic and Mandic, they are unlikely to back the Serb.