One of the concrete promises of the current President of Ukraine during the last election campaign was that he would not seek a second term. His term of office expires in May, as it would in peacetime. This is an ideal reason to destabilize the situation and government in the country through legal manipulations. You can be sure that the enemy will take advantage of this opportunity. So, what happens after May 20?
Either the presidency or death
The head of the CEC Oleh Didenko gave an official clarification on this matter. He emphasized that from May 21, Volodymyr Zelenskyy will continue to perform the duties of the President, as before. According to the Ukrainian Constitution, there are only four cases when the powers of this position are terminated early:
– resignation;
– health problems that make it impossible to perform duties;
– impeachment;
– death.
The Central Election Commission reported that they fully support the continuation of Zelenskyy’s presidency until the next elections and the arrival of a successor because of the current situation in the country. They also emphasized that there are currently no grounds for transferring the functions of the President of Ukraine to the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada.
A moment of manipulation
Recently, the Office of the President submitted an official appeal to the Constitutional Court regarding Zelenskyy’s stay in his current position. The issue of whether elections can be held now, and most importantly, whether the President will be considered legitimate after the end of the five-year term of office for which he was elected by the people, was discussed in detail.
The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Stefanchuk stated that Zelenskyy should continue to perform his duties under Article 108 of the Constitution of Ukraine. This norm will not allow speculation on the subject of legitimacy. More precisely, enemy propaganda can say anything (the legitimacy or illegitimacy of its statements and narratives has never been of interest to Russia and its supporters), but everything is clear from the point of view of law.
Didn’t do it
Zelenskyy believes that if the elections were held in the spring of 2024, he would have won because large-scale polls show that he has the highest support from the Ukrainian people among the possible candidates. For the sake of fairness, it should be noted that this percentage has dropped significantly since coming to power because one of the hopes of the voters was a quick end to the war in the East of Ukraine, which Zelenskyi not only failed to cope with but also allowed the conflict to escalate to an unprecedented level.
Therefore, Zelenskyy will remain in office. The question is how long because there is now an equal sign between him and the continuation of the war.
