President Volodymyr Zelensky lambasted ongoing calls to hold elections in Ukraine during a press conference on Feb. 23 amid an unstable security situation across the country.
"If we held elections right now, it's understandable that for (Ukraine), in terms of security, it's the number one priority that we have a democratic situation, democratic elections, and that they are determined (to be legitimate)," Zelensky said, ahead of listing a number question surrounding concerns over how an democratic election would be conducted amid the ongoing war.
"This is just not right. How can we call an election in which half of the population of the country won't be able to vote in?" Zelensky question. "How will they be able to vote?"
"How will military personnel be able to vote? There's no way. How can we vote normally when today (Ukraine was) attacked with 267 drones?" he added.
Zelensky's remarks follow those of U.S. President Donald Trump who said on Feb. 18 that he believes Ukraine should hold new elections, alleging, without evidence, that Zelensky holds a "4% approval rating." Trump further called Zelensky a "dictator" in a post on his social media platform Truth Social on Feb. 19, accusing him of refusing to have elections.
A poll release the same day by the case of Ukraine (IBIF) project in partnership with the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) found that around 63% of Ukrainians approve of Volodymyr Zelensky's actions as a president.
Ukraine has repeatedly said that it won’t hold elections until the war is over, in line with martial law as Russia constantly bombards the country and occupies one-fifth of its territory.
Ukraine was scheduled to hold a presidential election in March or April 2024, concluding Zelensky's first five-year term. The vote was postponed as the country's constitution does not permit elections under martial law, which was declared on Feb. 24, 2022, at the onset of Russia's all-out invasion.
Earlier in the press conference, Zelensky said he was ready to step down as president if it means “peace for Ukraine."
“I am focusing on security today and not in 20 years time. I don’t plan to be in power for 10 years,” Zelensky told the forum.
Russian President Vladimir Putin previously sought to use the delay to portray Zelensky as "illegitimate," saying that the authority should pass to Parliament speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk, a claim rejected by Kyiv as a distortion of the constitution.
Kateryna Denisova
(Updated: )
