Zelenskyy Warns Wartime Elections Would ‘Destroy’ Ukraine

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief

KYIV/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that holding elections in wartime, as suggested by his former defense minister, would “destroy” the country.

In remarks monitored by Worthy News, Zelenskyy said: “I believe that in a war like this, elections as such are a huge risk.”

He told journalists that “elections right now are a tsunami for the country that will split Ukraine.”

Zelenskyy was sworn in as the independent nation’s sixth president in May 2019 after a landslide victory in direct presidential elections the previous month.

However, Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 meant he stayed in office beyond the five-year presidential term for which he was elected.

ELECTIONS SUSPENDED

Zelenskyy, 48, spoke amid mounting pressure to hold a presidential vote after he dismissed Mykhailo Fedorov, the popular defense minister.

Fedorov, 35, gained widespread acclaim for radically modernizing Ukraine’s military capabilities by increasing the use of drones and software integration in 21st-century warfare.

Following his surprise dismissal as defense minister, thousands protested in the streets demanding his return, and he has since emerged as a prominent political figure.

Yet Zelenskyy suggested that Fedorov’s proposal to find a way to hold elections even during the ongoing armed conflict with Russia could “destroy” the country.

“I believe that if we want to destroy the country, then during such a war we can move towards elections,” Zelenskyy said.

DEMOCRACY DEBATE

Fedorov renewed the debate in a video address, arguing that “democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia.”

He called for Ukraine to develop a “legal, safe and realistic mechanism” allowing the country to restore a full democratic process despite a prolonged war.

“We are fighting precisely because we want to remain a free European state,” Fedorov said.

His intervention marked a significant challenge to Zelenskyy from a prominent former member of his government as Russia’s full-scale invasion stretches into its fifth year.

Ukraine has suspended national elections under martial law. Zelenskyy’s five-year presidential term formally expired in May 2024, but he has remained in office under wartime rules.

POLITICAL PRESSURE

Russia has repeatedly questioned Zelenskyy’s legitimacy because Ukraine has not held a presidential election since 2019, an argument rejected by Kyiv and its Western allies.

Fedorov’s challenge comes as Zelenskyy faces other domestic pressures, including a corruption scandal involving members of his administration. Zelenskyy himself has not been implicated.

Speaking publicly about his disagreements with Fedorov, Zelenskyy said he continued to have “a very positive attitude” toward his former defense minister despite their political differences.

“We’ve been through a lot together. But I think that he himself is going—or he’s being pushed—into the wrong things,” Zelenskyy said.

He also referred to disagreements involving Fedorov and Ukraine’s former commander-in-chief, General Oleksandr Syrsky, saying that “there can be no conflict at such a level between leaders.”

PUBLIC OPPOSES WARTIME VOTE

Despite the increasingly public political dispute, polling suggests most Ukrainians remain reluctant to hold elections while fighting continues.

A recent survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology found 57 percent of Ukrainians believed elections should be held only after the fighting ends, down from 69 percent in March.

However, critics have questioned both the reliability of wartime opinion polls and Zelenskyy’s intentions in delaying elections, despite his insistence that he is not seeking to cling to power.

Some commentators have also portrayed the conflict as a broader confrontation between Russia and the U.S.-led NATO military alliance, with Ukraine serving as its principal battlefield—a characterization rejected by Kyiv and NATO, which say Ukraine is defending itself against an unprovoked Russian invasion.

Kyiv argues that holding a nationwide vote would create formidable practical and security challenges, including arranging ballots for hundreds of thousands of military personnel, millions of Ukrainians living abroad, residents near the front lines and citizens from Russian-occupied territories.

ELECTION CHALLENGES

Zelenskyy has denied that postponing elections is an attempt to remain in power, saying a credible vote cannot be organized while Russian President Vladimir Putin refuses ceasefire proposals.

“My strategy is to bring the country to the end of the war and preserve an independent and sovereign state,” Zelenskyy said.

The political debate comes as Ukraine continues fighting Russian forces across a sprawling front while seeking additional Western military and financial support, leaving the question of when Ukrainians will next choose their president closely linked to when—and how—the war ends.

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