Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has clearly spoken out against initiatives to hold presidential elections in March, despite the ongoing Russian war of aggression. “I think elections are not appropriate now,” Zelensky said in his late-night video message broadcast in Kiev today.
The political division in the country, which has to overcome other challenges because of the Russian invasion, is not appropriate. The vote was expected to be canceled at the end of March 2024. However, there has recently been a rise in voices advocating political competition and elections.
State and Ukrainian resources should rather be directed towards “our victory” over Russia, Zelensky said. “And we all understand that now, in times of war, when there are many challenges, it is absolutely irresponsible to launch the issue of elections in a light and fun way in society.”
Changing the law was apparently up for debate
Due to martial law, the regular parliamentary elections scheduled for the end of October, in accordance with the Constitution, had already been cancelled. Recently there has been speculation in the Ukrainian media about alleged changes in the law to allow presidential elections even in times of war. Martial law was imposed across the country after the Russian army invaded more than 20 months ago. Current law only provides for elections after the end of the war. Zelensky has been in office since May 2019.