Ukraine must find a way to hold elections even during war – Fedorov

Ukraine must find a legal and safe mechanism that will allow elections to be held even in the face of a protracted war. At the same time, all Ukrainians, including military personnel and citizens abroad, must be given the opportunity to vote.

This was stated by the former Minister of Defense of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov.

According to him, Russia should not determine when Ukrainians will be able to elect a government again.

“Democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia. We are fighting precisely because we want to remain a free European state. Therefore, we must find a legal, safe and realistic mechanism that will allow Ukraine to restore a full-fledged democratic process even in the event of a protracted war,” Fedorov said.

He noted that when preparing such a mechanism, it is necessary to take into account the possibility of voting by the military, millions of Ukrainians abroad, as well as residents of front-line regions.

Among the main conditions, Fedorov named the security of the electoral process, the independence of institutions, and trust in the voting results.

According to him, Ukraine has repeatedly found solutions in situations that previously seemed impossible, so this can also be done in the case of elections.

Fedorov also stated that Ukrainians cannot live indefinitely without understanding why the government makes certain decisions, some reforms are progressing, and others are blocked.

“People cannot live indefinitely in a state where they do not know why certain decisions are made, why some reforms are moving forward while others are blocked, why decisions that are needed on the front line today are being debated in cabinets for months,” he said.

According to Fedorov, this may give society the impression that loyalty to the system is more important to officials than professionalism. According to him, a modern state cannot work on such a principle.

As previously reported, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy submitted to the Verkhovna Rada a proposal to appoint Yevheniy Khmara as Minister of Defense and Andriy Sybiga as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.

Recall that the presidential elections in Ukraine in 2026 will not be held due to security risks and the unpreparedness of the legislative framework.