Zelensky's Rival Picks the Right Fight at the Wrong Time
Zelensky's former friend-turned-foe calls for elections as the president's office faces a corruption probe. Has he jumped the gun?
Three days have been a challenging start for President Volodymyr Zelensky. Anti-corruption officials raided the office of his deputy chief of staff, Iryna Mudra, as well as another senior lawmaker. Meanwhile, a popular former minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, who was removed by Zelensky in July, has called for fresh elections despite Ukraine being under martial law.
Fedorov argued that democracy is not a luxury in peacetime and pushed for a legal, safe, and realistic mechanism to hold a vote. However, a recent poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology revealed that only 15% of Ukrainians want elections during war, while 57% believe they should be postponed until a peace agreement is reached.
Fedorov's call for elections is seen by many as a way to pressure Zelensky and increase his bargaining power, but experts suggest it is not viable from a legal standpoint. Zelensky's popularity has dipped, but dissatisfaction does not necessarily mean the people want to replace their wartime leader.
Written by urgent.news from Newsweek's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
