25 May 2014
Last updated at 15:40 ET
Announcing he had won, the 48-year-old businessman promised to forge closer links with the EU and restore peace in restive eastern regions.
Pro-Russian separatists severely disrupted voting there. Some 20 people have died in fighting in recent days.
No polling stations were open in Donetsk city, and across the region only seven out of 12 district electoral commissions were operating. The separatists are in control of large areas of the Donestk and Luhansk regions.
Four hours before polls closed, at 16:00 (13:00 GMT), unofficial estimates put the turnout nationwide at 45%.
Addressing supporters in Kiev, Mr Poroshenko said he would support a parliamentary election later this year.
He also said he would never recognise Russia's "occupation of Crimea", annexed by Moscow in March. Asked about relations with Russia, he said the "sovereignty and territorial integrity" of Ukraine mattered most to him.
Mr Poroshenko is the billionaire owner of the Roshen chocolates group, a TV station and several manufacturing plants.
US President Barack Obama hailed the election as an "important step forward in the efforts of the Ukrainian government to unify the country".
Sunday's poll was called after President Viktor Yanukovych was deposed in February, amid mass protests against his pro-Russian policies.
Vitaliy Klitschko (right) says he has been elected mayor of Kiev
In one of the two exit polls, Petro Poroshenko was predicted to have won as much as 57% of the vote
Local elections were also held on Sunday in Ukraine. Former
boxer Vitaliy Klitschko - again quoting exit polls - claimed he had been
elected mayor of Kiev.
Mr Klitschko, a pro-Western politician, withdrew his own presidential bid and announced his support for Mr Poroshenko.
Independence votes On Friday Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would respect the outcome of Ukraine's election.
Kiev and the West accuse Russia of stoking separatist sentiment - a claim President Putin denies.
Separatists in Donetsk and Luhansk declared independence after referendums on 11 May, a move not recognised by Kiev or its Western allies.
Official results are not expected until Monday
The two regions took their cue from a disputed referendum in Crimea, which led to Russia's annexation of the southern peninsula.
Eighteen candidates were competing in the presidential election, seen as a crucial to unite the country.
The exit polls suggest ex-PM Yulia Tymoshenko came a distant second, with over 12% of the vote.
"I want to congratulate the whole of Ukraine since despite external aggression, despite the Kremlin's intent to disrupt this election we had an honest and democratic election in Ukraine," Ms Tymoshenko said after the polls closed.
If the exit polls are confirmed, there will be no need for a run-off vote next month.
In other developments, Italian photojournalist Andrea Rocchelli and his Russian colleague Andrey Mironov were killed in clashes between separatist and government forces near Sloviansk on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev has begun a two-day trip to Crimea in a visit denounced by Ukraine as a "provocation".
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Petro Poroshenko claims Ukraine presidency
BBC's David Stern reports on Ukraine exit polls
Ukrainian confectionery tycoon Petro Poroshenko has claimed outright victory in the country's presidential election.
Mr Poroshenko, known as the "chocolate king", won more than 55% of the vote in the first round, exit polls suggest.Announcing he had won, the 48-year-old businessman promised to forge closer links with the EU and restore peace in restive eastern regions.
Pro-Russian separatists severely disrupted voting there. Some 20 people have died in fighting in recent days.
No polling stations were open in Donetsk city, and across the region only seven out of 12 district electoral commissions were operating. The separatists are in control of large areas of the Donestk and Luhansk regions.
Four hours before polls closed, at 16:00 (13:00 GMT), unofficial estimates put the turnout nationwide at 45%.
Addressing supporters in Kiev, Mr Poroshenko said he would support a parliamentary election later this year.
He also said he would never recognise Russia's "occupation of Crimea", annexed by Moscow in March. Asked about relations with Russia, he said the "sovereignty and territorial integrity" of Ukraine mattered most to him.
Mr Poroshenko is the billionaire owner of the Roshen chocolates group, a TV station and several manufacturing plants.
US President Barack Obama hailed the election as an "important step forward in the efforts of the Ukrainian government to unify the country".
Sunday's poll was called after President Viktor Yanukovych was deposed in February, amid mass protests against his pro-Russian policies.
Vitaliy Klitschko (right) says he has been elected mayor of Kiev
In one of the two exit polls, Petro Poroshenko was predicted to have won as much as 57% of the vote
Mr Klitschko, a pro-Western politician, withdrew his own presidential bid and announced his support for Mr Poroshenko.
Independence votes On Friday Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would respect the outcome of Ukraine's election.
Kiev and the West accuse Russia of stoking separatist sentiment - a claim President Putin denies.
Separatists in Donetsk and Luhansk declared independence after referendums on 11 May, a move not recognised by Kiev or its Western allies.
Official results are not expected until Monday
Eighteen candidates were competing in the presidential election, seen as a crucial to unite the country.
The exit polls suggest ex-PM Yulia Tymoshenko came a distant second, with over 12% of the vote.
"I want to congratulate the whole of Ukraine since despite external aggression, despite the Kremlin's intent to disrupt this election we had an honest and democratic election in Ukraine," Ms Tymoshenko said after the polls closed.
If the exit polls are confirmed, there will be no need for a run-off vote next month.
In other developments, Italian photojournalist Andrea Rocchelli and his Russian colleague Andrey Mironov were killed in clashes between separatist and government forces near Sloviansk on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev has begun a two-day trip to Crimea in a visit denounced by Ukraine as a "provocation".
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