Voting in arguably one of the most consequential elections of modern times is set to conclude on Nov. 5, as U.S. citizens will pick their country's 47th president.
Democratic nominee Kamala Harris and her Republican rival Donald Trump enter the home stretch neck-and-neck, according to recent polls, with neither of the candidates reportedly having a definitive lead in seven battleground states.
While U.S. presidential elections are routinely closely watched by countries around the world, perhaps none have as much at stake this time around as Ukraine.
As the country battles what Kyiv's military leadership has described as one of "the most powerful offensives" by Russia since the beginning of the all-out invasion, Trump continues to raise doubts about future U.S. military assistance for Ukraine, while insisting he can broker a swift peace agreement.
Harris is largely expected to continue the slow-paced yet generally Kyiv-friendly policy of outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden.
“We will work with any president that the people of the United States chooses,” President Volodymyr Zelensky told journalists in late October. “We hope that the policy of the United States will not change, and they will continue to support us.”
“If the support decreases of course, we will count on ourselves, and on unity in Europe, and on the public opinion of the American people.”
Here are 14 stories about the 2024 U.S. presidential election published by the Kyiv Independent throughout the campaign.
JD Vance opposes military aid, NATO membership for Ukraine. He's now Trump's VP pick
Trump selected Ohio Senator J.D. Vance as his running mate on July 15.
Vance is one of Trump's most vocal supporters and an outspoken critic of U.S. aid to Ukraine. He has also said it would be "completely irresponsible" for Ukraine to join NATO.
He also argued for the U.S. to focus solely on preventing Chinese expansion, even if that means sacrificing sovereign Ukrainian lands to Russia.
Owen Racer
With Biden out, what could a Kamala Harris presidency mean for Ukraine?
While it is likely that if elected Harris’s policies toward Ukraine would remain similar to Biden’s, her appearances at three consecutive Munich Security Conferences — the first being in 2022 just five days before the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion — offered clues into the exact stance she could take.
Owen Racer
Biden could cement his legacy by boosting Ukraine support, experts say
With U.S. President Biden officially out of the running for re-election, Ukrainian soldiers, experts, and advocates had fresh hope that the 81-year-old politician with decades of transatlantic diplomacy experience would increase support for the country during his final months in office.
Though Ukraine’s Western allies have provided Ukraine with massive amounts of weaponry since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, supplies have at times arrived with delays, triggering officials to complain they were not being given enough to defeat Moscow on the battlefield.
Andrea Januta
Harris VP pick Governor Tim Walz good news for Ukraine
Harris has selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz — an outspoken Ukraine supporter — as her running mate for the U.S. presidential election.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Walz has been a vocal advocate for Ukraine in its fight against Russia, signing legislation barring state agencies from doing business with Russian and Belarusian companies.
His state is also home to weapons manufacturers that supply arms critical for Ukraine’s defense.
Owen Racer
Harris closes convention in support of Ukraine after nearly sidelining foreign policy
Moments after officially accepting the Democrats’ nomination for president of the U.S. on Aug. 22, the night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Harris reminded voters that foreign policy cannot be completely sidelined in the 2024 election.
“As president, I will stand strong with Ukraine and our NATO allies,” Harris firmly said with a raised voice to an erupting crowd of rowdy Democrats.
The vice president's remarks were light on policy but consistent in support of Ukraine’s pushback against Russia’s full-scale invasion, and came after her sprint of a campaign has received criticism for little attention to foreign policy concerns.
Owen Racer
U.S. sense of urgency questioned as billions in Ukraine aid hangs in balance
News that $6 billion worth of outstanding U.S. military aid to Ukraine could expire by the end of September if Congress didn’t take urgent action unsettled some in Kyiv, where the painful memory of a larger package delay that led to battlefield losses remained fresh.
Natalia Yermak
‘Time is currency,’ constrained US congressional trips to Ukraine stymie diplomatic efforts
A series of logistical constraints on U.S. Congressional members’ travel to Ukraine increasingly raised concerns about the effectiveness of American diplomacy, members of Congress and Congressional advisors told the Kyiv Independent.
Owen Racer
Woodward revelations deepen debate on whether Trump will sell out Ukraine to Kremlin
As the Nov. 5 presidential election in the U.S. approached, debate was intensifying over whether Donald Trump would act in the interests of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The revelations fit with Trump's track record of praising Putin and seeking a friendlier relationship with Russia. Analysts say that Trump likes Putin because he views himself along with the Russian leader as "strongmen."
Oleg Sukhov
The road to Republican US support of Ukraine continues through evangelicalism
In the final weeks of campaigning, a top focus for many Republicans was rebooting a wave of evangelical support that proved crucial to the party taking the White House in 2016.
And Trump wasn't the only one courting evangelicals — the mostly conservative group has for months been a focus of Ukrainian lobbying efforts seeking to expand and cement Republican support for Ukraine.
Owen Racer
Boosting US support for Ukraine proves difficult in final pre-election push
After serving nearly three months in the Ukrainian Foreign Legion, a unit within the country’s army composed of fighters from abroad, Manus McCaffery became a hometown hero in Parma, Ohio, home to one of the largest diaspora communities in the U.S. with roots from Ukraine.
“I’m extremely uncertain, it’s tough because I want to balance what I think is best for America, but also, in a lot of ways, I'm a one-issue person because I care about Ukraine so much,” McCaffery told the Kyiv Independent.
Owen Racer
Trump's reported plan to 'freeze' Russia's war 'unrealistic,' Ukrainian lawmaker says
A plan reportedly being considered by Trump to freeze Russia's full-scale invasion if he becomes president is "unrealistic," a Ukrainian lawmaker told the Kyiv Independent on Oct. 29.
Oleksandr Merezhko, the chair of the parliament's foreign affairs policy, said that upon taking office, Trump would soon have to "face reality," and any such plan would fail in light of political realities.
Chris York
Ukraine's diaspora loudly backs Harris, quietly behind Trump in swing state Pennsylvania
Just ten days before the election, nearly a dozen went door-knocking in Montgomery County, where one of the country’s largest Ukrainian populations now has voter material available in Ukrainian for the first time. The county includes non-voting recent emigres from Biden’s post-full-scale invasion Uniting for Ukraine parole program and thousands more with U.S. citizenship who arrived in the 1990s.
Owen Racer
Ukrainians in the U.S. weigh in on upcoming Trump vs Harris election
Democratic candidate Harris’s campaign promises to continue supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia would seemingly make her the obvious choice for Ukrainians in the U.S. in the 2024 presidential elections, but the diaspora is anything but united in their choice for president.
Despite Trump’s open hostility to aid for Ukraine and apparent close relations with Putin, some Ukrainian American voters feel he’s the one who could end the war swiftly.
Owen Racer
“Trump fundamentally doesn't care about Ukraine” – Michael McFaul on US elections
The Kyiv Independent sat down with Michael McFaul, former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, professor of international studies at Stanford University, and the co-founder of the Yermak-McFaul Expert Group on Russian Sanctions, to talk about the U.S. elections and what their outcome could mean for Ukraine, Russia, and the future of the rules-based world order.
“I am deeply worried about a second Trump presidency, both because of what he might want to do intentionally and because of what his signaling of weakness might provoke unintentionally,” McFaul said.
Francis Farrell
