AKIPRESS.COM - Petro Poroshenko, a businessman, has won a landmark presidential election in Ukraine with 56% of the vote, according to exit polls, clearing the 50% threshold to win outright without a second round.

Former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko was trailing far behind with about 13%.

Ukrainians arrived in the polling stations on Sunday in what was seen as the most important election since independence.

"Today we can definitely say all of Ukraine has voted, this is a national vote," said Poroshenko from his campaign headquarters shortly after the exit polls were released, the Guardian said.

The first steps that the new executive office will take at beginning should be focused on stopping the war, said Poroshenko.

He also committed himself to start a dialogue with Russia and launch negotiations for a new treaty to replace the Budapest memorandum.

"The turnout is a lot higher this time, which is good, although the election workers are barely able to keep up," said Olesya Maximenko, a vote observer with the civil society non-governmental organisation OPORA in Kiev, said turnout was high.