Ukraine Could Hold Elections in Winter, but There's a Condition, Zelensky

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that Ukraine could hold elections in winter. However, for this to happen the United States would need to secure a ceasefire from Russia.

During the conversation, a journalist asked the president whether, given the overall complexity of voting (some people abroad, some on the front lines), this means that elections in Ukraine will take place only after the war. Zelenskiy said that the Ukrainian side sees it that way, but Kyiv had put to Washington proposals under which elections could be held already in winter. "Yes, that is how we see it. But we were making proposals. I told the Americans that you can reach with the Russians an agreement on a ceasefire for the winter period, and then people would have electricity and water. And at the same time we could also conduct the elections," Zelenskiy said.

What Zelenskiy also said. It is worth recalling that in the same interview Zelenskiy said that holding elections in Ukraine is difficult because a larger portion of citizens will not be able to vote. Specifically, it refers to military personnel who are in trenches. The president emphasized that it is the military who must, first and foremost, elect the head of state, since they have preserved and continue to preserve the country's independence. Therefore, conducting elections without them would be unfair. At the same time Zelenskiy said that the government can consider holding elections in Ukraine in an online format. But in that case, the Verkhovna Rada will have to seek and find a decision to do so. We also wrote that in August the spokesperson for the Verkhovna Rada, Ruslan Stefanchuk, said that the Verkhovna Rada is working on a law on the possibility of elections in Ukraine during the war. At the same time, their specific conduct at the moment is impossible.