Romanians overwhelmingly rejected an attempt to impeach the country's reform-minded president, an official said Sunday, with near-complete referendum results showing about three-fourths of voters backing the embattled leader.

Romanians were asked on Saturday whether they supported a motion to impeach President Traian Basescu after Parliament suspended him last month, accusing him of abuse of power - an allegation he denies.

With more than 90 percent of the ballots counted, 74.3 percent of voters said "no," while 24.9 percent support impeachment, Central Electoral Commission head Dumitru Gheorghe said. Turnout was just under 44 percent, he said.

The results mean Basescu - locked for months in a political standoff with the prime minister and lawmakers over his aggressive attempts at reform - can return to office once the results are validated.

Basescu, celebrating his victory, said the referendum showed that the public backs his push to enact change in the new EU nation.

"Romanians want justice, and we have an obligation to give them what they want," he said on Saturday. "I appeal to parliament to cooperate in taking into account today's vote."

Prime Minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu, a one-time ally who has publicly clashed with Basescu in recent weeks, said he would work with Basescu, saying Romanians had given Basescu "a second chance."

"I respect this decision, and will act in a spirit of collaboration with the president," he said.

In Brussels, which had watched the unfolding political crisis nervously, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso congratulated Basescu and urged the new EU member to put the political infighting behind it.

"I hope that this outcome will contribute to allow Romania, as a full member of the European Union, to move forward with the reforms that are needed, especially in the areas of judicial reform and the fight against corruption," he said Sunday in a statement.

"To achieve these reforms, Romania needs a stable political and legal framework with all political actors working together to achieve the growth and social development of Romania," he said.

Basescu, then head of the Democratic Party, came to power in a December 2004 election, defeating then-Prime Minister Adrian Nastase.

(China Daily via agencies May 21, 2007)