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 January 2025[update]) been extended for the 13th time until 7 February 2025.[7]
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Incumbent President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has not confirmed if he will seek reelection. When asked in a January 2025 interview, he said that seeking a second term was not his current goal or focus, but his decision would depend on the outcome of the war.[8]
Background
Summarize
Perspective
Postponement
Article 19 of Ukraine's "On the Legal Regime of Martial Law" bans presidential, parliamentary, and local elections under martial law,[9] while Article 10 states that the powers of the president, parliament, and Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine cannot be terminated under martial law.[10][11] 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",[12] 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.[13]
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][13] as the Russian invasion continued. Russia controls 18% of Ukraine's territory as of October 2024[update],[14] and nearly 14 million Ukrainians have either fled abroad or been displaced internally.[2][13][9] Other challenges identified include danger to voters and likely disruption of the voting process[9] due to Russian bombardment;[15] the inability of citizens in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine to vote;[15] the inability of soldiers to vote or run as candidates;[13] damaged polling infrastructure;[13] an outdated voter registry that has not been updated to reflect millions of displaced voters;[9] expanded state powers and restricted rights under martial law that would limit campaigning[9] and prevent fair competition for opposition candidates;[16] and the lack of funds.[13]
A poll released by KIIS in October 2023 reported that 81% of Ukrainians did not want elections until the war was over,[17] and more than 200 civil society institutions, NGOs, and human rights groups have formally opposed wartime elections.[15] 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.[18] Later in November, 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[19] 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.[20]
The postponement of the election was criticised by representatives of the Russian government. Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for the Kremlin, contended that the move deprived Zelenskyy of formal legitimacy; Russia held its own presidential election in 2024, which was criticised by international observers as having unprecedented levels of fraud and irregularity.[21][22]
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.[23] 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.[24]
The constitution limits presidents to serving two terms in office, though only Leonid Kuchma has served two terms.[25]
Candidates
Announced intent to run
| Name | Born | Affiliation | Experience | Key dates | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Oleksii Arestovych |
3 August 1975 (49) Dedoplistsqaro, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union |
Independent | Adviser to the Office of the President of Ukraine (2020–2023) Speaker of the Trilateral Contact Group on Ukraine (2020–2022) |
Announced intention: 1 November 2023[26] | |
_(cropped_2).jpeg) Petro Poroshenko |
26 September 1965 (59) Bolhrad, Odesa Oblast |
European Solidarity | People's Deputy (1998–2007, 2012–14, 2019–present) President of Ukraine (2014–2019) Minister of Trade and Economic Development (2012) Minister of Foreign Affairs (2009–10) |
Announced intention: 2 April 2024[27] | |
Potential candidates
| Name | Born | Affiliation | Experience | Comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Valerii Zaluzhnyi |
8 July 1973 (51) Novohrad-Volynskyi, Zhytomyr Oblast |
Independent | Ambassador to the United Kingdom (2024–present) Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (2021–2024) |
Has not confirmed if he will enter politics; frequently discussed[28] and ranked in polls among leading candidates[29][30][1] | |
.jpg) Volodymyr Zelenskyy |
25 January 1978 (47) Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast |
Servant of the People | President of Ukraine (2019–present) | Has not confirmed if he will seek re-election | |
Opinion polls
 | Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. Updates on reimplementing the Graph extension, which will be known as the Chart extension, can be found on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
See also
References
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