A screenshot of an alleged Politico article is being circulated online, which states that on the sidelines of the White House they are beginning to doubt the legitimacy of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi. The reason for this is the cancellation of presidential elections. “The country lacks basic democratic procedures” - such phrases of dissatisfaction are allegedly heard in private conversations of American officials.

However, this is not true. None of Politico’s social media pages or media websites published a similar article. The same screenshot is distributed only by Russian and pro-Russian resources. Specialists from the VoxCheck project write about this.

Currently, martial law has been introduced in Ukraine, therefore, in accordance with Article 19 of the Law of Ukraine “On the Legal Regime of Martial Law”, holding elections is prohibited. This means that for the duration of the martial law, the President of Ukraine will remain in office legally, and the next elections will be held after the martial law is lifted.

The problem with holding elections in Ukraine is the safety of citizens. After all, part of the country’s territory is temporarily occupied, some cities are within reach of enemy artillery, and the entire country is under the threat of missile attacks. In addition, in wartime, the costs of holding elections are unjustified, because Ukraine is fighting for its existence and funds for holding elections can be used to purchase military equipment.

After all, Zelenskyi did not lose his legitimacy after the elections were canceled. Despite the drop in ratings, the incumbent president maintains a relatively high level of support. Data from the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) show that as of February 2024, trust in Zelenskyi was 64%. Before the full-scale Russian invasion, 37% of citizens trusted him, and immediately after February 24, 2022, Zelenskyi's level increased to 90%. Also, the KIIS study shows that in February 2024, 69% of Ukrainians supported the opinion that Zelenskyi should serve as president until the end of martial law.