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Next Ukrainian presidential election

Presidential elections were scheduled to be held in Ukraine in March or April 2024. However, as martial law has been in effect since 24 February 2022 in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, no elections were held because Ukrainian law does not allow presidential elections to be held when martial law is in effect.[1][2][3][4][5][6] Martial law has been extended in 90-day intervals since the full-scale invasion with parliament's approval, and has most recently (as of October 2024) been extended for the 13th time until 7 February 2025.[7]

Next Ukrainian presidential election
← 2019 TBA
Opinion polls
Incumbent President

Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Servant of the People



Background

Postponement

Article 19 of Ukraine's "On the Legal Regime of Martial Law" bans presidential, parliamentary, and local elections under martial law,[8] while Article 10 states that the powers of the president, parliament, and Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine cannot be terminated under martial law.[9][10] Article 108 of the Constitution of Ukraine stipulates that "The President of Ukraine exercises his or her powers until the assumption of office by the newly-elected President of Ukraine",[11] allowing incumbent President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to legitimately remain president until the next president is sworn in, even after the expiration of the five-year term to which he was elected in 2019.[12]

Apart from the legal prohibition, both government and opposition politicians in Ukraine questioned the feasibility of a 2024 election, citing concerns over security and displaced voters[2][12] as the Russian invasion continued. Russia controls 18% of Ukraine's territory as of October 2024,[13] and nearly 14 million Ukrainians have either fled abroad or been displaced internally.[2][12][8] Other challenges identified include danger to voters and likely disruption of the voting process[8] due to Russian bombardment;[14] the inability of citizens in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine to vote;[14] the inability of soldiers to vote or run as candidates;[12] damaged polling infrastructure;[12] an outdated voter registry that has not been updated to reflect millions of displaced voters;[8] expanded state powers and restricted rights under martial law that would limit campaigning[8] and prevent fair competition for opposition candidates;[15] and the lack of funds.[12]

A poll released by KIIS in October 2023 reported that 81% of Ukrainians did not want elections until the war was over,[16] and more than 200 civil society institutions, NGOs, and human rights groups have formally opposed wartime elections.[14] In November 2023, Zelenskyy said "now is not the right time for elections", in response to a claim by European Solidarity MP Oleksiy Goncharenko that Zelenskyy had decided to hold elections on 31 March 2024.[17] Later in the same month, all political parties represented in the Verkhovna Rada signed a document in which they agreed to postpone holding any national election until after the end of martial law[18] and agreed to work on a special law that would regulate the first post-war election, which would take place no earlier than six months after the cancellation of martial law.[19]

Electoral system

The President of Ukraine is elected for a five-year term using the two-round system; if no candidate receives an absolute majority in the first round, a second round is expected to take place three weeks after the first. According to Article 103 of the constitution, in the event of pre-term termination of presidential authority, the election of a new president must take place within 90 days of the previous president's departure from office.[20]

The constitution limits presidents to serving two terms in office.

Candidates

Announced intent to run

Name Party Occupation Notes
Oleksii Arestovych - Consultant; blogger; former adviser to the Office of the President of Ukraine Announced intention to run on 1 November 2023[21]
Petro Poroshenko European Solidarity Former President of Ukraine (2014–2019); leader of European Solidarity; People's Deputy of Ukraine Announced intention to run on 2 April 2024[22]

Potential candidates

Name Party Occupation Notes
Valerii Zaluzhnyi - Former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (2021–2024); Ambassador of Ukraine to the United Kingdom Has not confirmed if he will enter politics; frequently discussed as potential candidate[23] and listed in polls[24][1]
Volodymyr Zelenskyy Servant of the People Incumbent President of Ukraine (2019–present) Has not confirmed if he will seek re-election

Opinion polls

Main article: Opinion polling for the next Ukrainian presidential election

References

  1. ^ a b "Zelensky's First Term Is Almost Up. No One's Sure What Happens Next". The New York Times. 5 October 2023. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Yuliia Dysa (3 November 2023). "Ukraine's Zelenskiy ponders idea of 2024 election during war". Reuters.
  3. ^ Yurii Kliuchkovskyi and Volodymyr Venher (July 2022). "Organisation and holding of elections in post-war Ukraine. Prerequisites and challenges". Council of Europe.
  4. ^ "PACE President Tiny Kox: It is up to the Government, Parliament and the people of Ukraine to decide when and how to conduct elections". Council of Europe Office in Ukraine. 17 May 2023. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  5. ^ "Ukraine legislature extends martial law and general mobilization through November". Jurist. 28 July 2023.
  6. ^ "Ukrainian Parliament extends martial law and general mobilisation". Ukrainska Pravda. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
  7. ^ Romanenko, Valentyna. "Ukraine's parliament votes in favour of extending martial law and mobilisation in 13th vote". Ukrainska Pravda. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d e Reaney, Lee; Wasserman, Joel (31 October 2024). "Wartime Elections in Ukraine Are Impossible". Foreign Policy. Archived from the original on 30 October 2024. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  9. ^ "Five years of Zelenskyyʼs presidency will expire in May 2024. Some analysts and enemies say he will lose legitimacy. Itʼs true? — No, this is an unconstitutional delusion. Babelʼs legal and anti-fake analysis". babel.ua. 26 February 2024. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  10. ^ Про правовий режим воєнного стану [On the legal regime of martial law]. 2015. § 10, § 19.
  11. ^ "Article 108". Constitution of Ukraine. 1996.
  12. ^ a b c d e f Abdurasulov, Abdujalil (25 November 2023). "Ukraine war: Fierce row erupts over 2024 election". BBC News. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  13. ^ "War in Ukraine". Global Conflict Tracker. Retrieved 2 November 2024.
  14. ^ a b c Oz, Katerji (17 November 2023). "Zelensky Is Following Ukrainian Law in Postponing Elections". Foreign Policy. Archived from the original on 30 October 2024. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  15. ^ "Zelensky's term would have expired this month, but he's staying. Russia wants to use it". The Kyiv Independent. 6 May 2024. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  16. ^ "Press releases and reports - When elections should be held, attitudes towards online voting and attitudes towards possible restrictions on citizens' rights: results of a telephone survey conducted on September 30-October 11, 2023". Kyiv International Institute of Sociology. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  17. ^ Свобода, Радіо (6 November 2023). "«Вибори не на часі» – Зеленський прокоментував заяви про можливість виборів у 2024 році". Радіо Свобода (in Ukrainian).
  18. ^ "Ukraine's political parties agree on carrying out elections only after the war". Ukrainska Pravda. 30 November 2023. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  19. ^ "Conclusions of the ninth Jean Monnet dialogue" (PDF) (in Ukrainian). Verkhovna Rada. 12 November 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
  20. ^ Article 103 of the Constitution of Ukraine (1996)
  21. ^ "Zelenskyy's former advisor Arestovych to stand in future elections". english.nv.ua. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
  22. ^ "Poroshenko plans to run for president again after war ends". The Kyiv Independent. 3 April 2024. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
  23. ^ "Are elections possible before the war ends, and who is likely to win?". Ukrainska Pravda. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
  24. ^ "Якби Зеленський і Залужний боролись за крісло президента, то йшли б нога в ногу – опитування (If Zelenskyi and Zaluzhnyi were fighting for the president's post, they would come within an inch of each other - survey)". Ukrainska Pravda (in Ukrainian). 4 December 2023. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
   

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