Elections to be held in Ukraine after the end of martial law do not fall under any classification outlined in the Constitution. Therefore, a separate legislative act will be required to organize so-called “post-regular” elections.
This was announced by Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament (Verkhovna Rada), Ruslan Stefanchuk, in the program “Ye Rozmova” on the Ukrinform YouTube channel.
“I would urge everyone to refer to the current legislation, where both the Electoral Code and the Law on Martial Law clearly state: elections cannot be held during martial law. Everything else is manipulation by certain political parties and figures. I am convinced that the law will be observed in Ukraine, and only after the end of martial law can we begin to talk about any elections,” he emphasized.
The Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament stressed the importance of ensuring that future elections in Ukraine are democratic and internationally recognized.
Stefanchuk noted that the authorities face many challenges: how military personnel will vote — which will depend on how martial law ends; how citizens abroad and internally displaced persons will cast their ballots; how observers will be invited and organized.
“The uniqueness of the current situation is that the elections to be held after the end of martial law do not fall under any of the classifications listed in the Constitution. We have regular and early elections, but these will be so-called ‘post-regular’ or ‘post-war’ elections, and for that, a separate legislative act will be required,” Stefanchuk explained.
He added that Parliament has already started preliminary preparations to develop this legislative initiative.
Stefanchuk shared that a meeting with the Head of the Central Election Commission has already taken place, during which they discussed the current status of the voter registry.
At the same time, questions remain unresolved: Will presidential, parliamentary, and local elections be held simultaneously or separately?
“There are many questions to which we cannot yet give definitive answers. But we are working through all the options, the pros and cons of each. The goal is to make decisions not based on political expediency, but on the pragmatic reality that will exist at the time the war ends,” he said.
When asked further, Stefanchuk said it is unlikely that presidential, parliamentary, and local elections will be held at the same time.
The Speaker also addressed the idea of holding elections via the Diia mobile application. He called it unrealistic at this stage, citing a large number of deepfakes and widespread disinformation, which poses a high risk of manipulation in this digital context.
As Ukrinform previously reported, Deputy Head of the Office of the President Pavlo Palisa stated that no preparations for elections are currently underway at the President’s Office.
Source: Parliament preparing draft legislation on post-war elections – Speaker
