Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is thinking about holding elections as soon as this summer. This is a big change from what he said before when he resisted calls for early elections amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.
According to sources from The Economist, Zelenskyy recently told his team to prepare for elections after a full ceasefire. The U.S. believes this ceasefire could happen by the end of April, around Easter Sunday, April 20. Ukraine’s parliament will decide on May 5 whether to extend martial law, which is set to end on May 8. Ending martial law is a necessary step to start elections.
Ukrainian law requires at least 60 days of campaigning, so the elections could happen in early July. However, election officials noted that they might need a longer campaign period to update voter lists during the war.
Zelenskyy’s decision seems to be influenced by pressure from global leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. They were frustrated with his earlier refusal to hold elections, believing that voters might choose to remove him from office.
Opposition leaders like Petro Poroshenko think elections could be delayed until August or October. Poroshenko claimed that the campaign has already started because of Zelenskyy’s actions against him in February. Some in the government believe Zelenskyy could surprise everyone by holding elections in July, which would limit the time opposition groups have to organize and campaign.
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