Zelenskyy: I’m ready to hold elections tomorrow, but war with Russia makes them impossible

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told CBS that he personally is “ready to do it tomorrow” — meaning to call presidential elections — but that in practice, legally and for security reasons, holding a vote while Russia’s war continues is impossible.

“I am ready to do it tomorrow. But in wartime it is not possible, not only because of the Constitution and the election law, but primarily for security reasons,” Zelenskyy said in the interview, adding that schools are closed and that nearly nine million citizens now live abroad, which complicates any electoral process. ([opserver.mk](https://opserver.mk/svet/zelenski-podgotven-sum-za-izbori-utre-no-tie-se-nevozmozhni-poradi-konfliktot/?utm_source=openai))

Why Kyiv says elections cannot be held during martial law

Officials in Kyiv point to existing legal constraints: Article 19 of the Law on the Legal Regime of Martial Law expressly bans presidential, parliamentary and local elections while martial law is in force. The status introduced by presidential decree after the Russian full-scale invasion on 24 February 2022 has been repeatedly extended by parliament. ([rada.gov.ua](https://www.rada.gov.ua/en/print/165185.html?utm_source=openai))

The constitution also provides that a president continues in office until a newly elected successor assumes the post, which together with the martial-law ban effectively extends terms for key institutions until conditions for a credible vote are restored. Zelenskyy told CBS that the practical obstacles in occupied territories are acute: “Will they vote? How? And who will oversee the vote while Russian soldiers are deployed there?” he asked. ([hcj.gov.ua](https://hcj.gov.ua/sites/default/files/field/file/the_constitution_of_ukraine.pdf?utm_source=openai))

Zelenskyy dismissed calls from some Ukrainian politicians for snap elections as a mistake driven by personal ambition, saying that during the war “peace is the absolute priority. Politics isn’t even second on the list. For citizens it is in 100th place in importance. Their concerns are survival, education and life.” The president framed his answer around security and the need to protect displaced voters and election infrastructure before any ballot can be credible.

The combination of legal prohibition, mass displacement and active hostilities in occupied areas makes holding nationwide elections a significant risk, Kyiv officials say. For now, the government’s public position is that elections should wait for a ceasefire or other durable security guarantees that would allow polling to be held safely and impartially.

Photo: Printskrin