Amid calls from international partners, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyi is stuck with a difficult choice: whether or not to hold parliamentary and presidential elections during a war.
On a recent trip to Kyiv, US senator Lindsey Graham – one of the most active advocates of aid to Ukraine – called on the Ukrainian authorities to consider holding elections as soon as possible, despite martial law still being in effect. Tiny Kox, president of the parliamentary assembly of the Council of Europe, has made a similar call.
The idea of holding both presidential and parliamentary elections in 2024 has been in the air for some time in Ukraine. The presidential race is supposed to conclude on 31 March 2024, and the parliamentary campaign – on 29 October this year. That, at least, will not happen because Parliament has just prolonged martial law for another 90 days: Ukrainian laws forbid holding any elections while martial law is imposed, and election campaigns are supposed to last at least 90 days.
