Ukraine is finally heading to elections. Both Trump and Putin have questioned Zelenskyy’s authority over power after he imposed a martial law last year in the wake of the war and delayed polls indefinitely. Not anymore. The Economist has revealed that there’s a growing chatter in Ukraine about holding elections as soon as during this summer.
The report claimed that Zelensky held a meeting last week to discuss an election and instructed staff to prepare for a vote once a ceasefire is reached with Russia.
The meeting has happened but still, officials are denying it publicly. For example, a presidential source said, “There is fake information there. There was no such meeting and there was no such instruction.”
Valerii Zaluzhnyi, former commander in chief of Ukraine’s army, also rejected the reports.
He said, “While the war continues, we all need to work to save the country, not think about elections. I don’t comment on any rumours.”
But here’s the kicker! As per a BBC report, Zelenskyy wants to hold surprise elections, as quickly as possible, to catch rivals off guard and not give them enough time to prepare.
According to experts, he doesn’t want to let the rivals create political divisions after the war ends.
As of now, Kyiv-controlled media is peddling this narrative that Zelenskyy is a popular face. Kyiv-controlled Kyiv International Institute of Sociology said Zelenskyy’s approval rating stood at 69 per cent, just days after Trump questioned his authority.
Most likely, Zelenskyy here wants to thwart the rise of opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko. She is a former prime minister and is believed to be in contact with Trump officials.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko has claimed Tymoshenko is in touch with Trump’s team and pitching themselves as potential successors to Zelensky.
Zelenskyy is thus anxious and wants to pre-empt her rise.
Secondly, the BBC highlighted that people who have suffered the most due to Zelenskyy’s policies are not available to vote. It means people who are most likely to vote against him are not even present here.
Zelenskyy’s answer to that is to allow people to vote using a smart phone app called Diia.
The proponents argue that using Diia would allow people to vote quickly, cheaply, and safely without having to travel to a polling booth overseas or in the trenches.
However, there are serious concerns about its credibility.
The platform is highly vulnerable to cyber-attacks and technical failures, raising security concerns.
If Zelenskyy regime requires, it can easily manipulate the results.
Western governments may not approve it, and Russia certainly would not.
Even if Diia is put to use, verifying voter eligibility would still pose a challenge due to incomplete and outdated voter registers.
These are some loopholes that Zelensky wants to exploit.
Because, clearly, just until the last month, Zelensky was not so keen on holding elections.
For example, Mikhail Podoliak, a top advisor to Zelensky, claimed that the martial law won’t be lifted even after a ceasefire with Russia is reached.
Podoliak said that a temporary ceasefire wouldn’t mean the conflict is over.
Podoliak said: “We need to be ready to keep fighting until the crisis is fully resolved”. He also stressed that the 30-day ceasefire wouldn’t unblock elections in Ukraine.
You see, Zelensky knows he’s an unpopular face and holding free and fair elections would unseat him and bring an end to his empire. Now, he’s agreed to holding elections but he will make sure those are neither free and fair.
