Demetris Christofias, the Cyprus Communist party leader, yesterday won a run-off presidential vote by a clear margin, opening the way for fresh negotiations on re-unifying the island's Greek and Turkish communities.

Yiannakis Kassoulides, the rightwing candidate, conceded defeat an hour after the polls closed. With 97 per cent of the vote counted Mr Christofias was leading with 53.5 per cent to 46.4 per cent - a result that makes him the first unreconstructed communist to head a European Union member-state.