When there was a need for an actor to play an ordinary man who unexpectedly becomes a candidate for president, the choice fell on Volodimir Zelenskij. Now is he even a candidate in the presidential elections 31. march.
Zelenskij have in 20 years had likenesses of politicians as their favorittrolle in his career as landskjent standupkomiker.
But as a good example of that reality imitates art more than vice versa, is the 41-year-old Zelenskij.
He plays the president in a popular TV series, and has been the leading candidate to become Ukraine’s next president. And it is a role he takes seriously.
– Corruption is everywhere. We need to reduce the impact it has on the state, on people’s lives, ” he says in an interview in which he also describes the plans to stop the flight of people out of the country by increasing salaries and providing rural internet.
the Advantage with the lack of experience
Zelenskij claim that his lack of political experience is a merit in a valgklima where people see all hope of a better future be crushed. He calls himself a fresh face.
In the series “People’s servant”, where he has been the star since 2015, he plays Vasyl Holoborodko, a teacher who suddenly becomes the president after a video one of his students made of him while he criticized the corruption, went viral.
the Series is full of crude humor and bannord, but the inexperienced president Holoborodko ends up as a good leader who tries as best he can.
It is not clear how much Zelenskijs popularity is due to the role of the celebrity, or whether it reflects a longing people have for a honest man in presidentstolen.
Fun of the president
As standupkomiker do Zelenskij often made fun of the president Porosjenko. Satiren have contributed to the fact that he has become so popular that has been, but annoyed Porosjenko.
Zelenskij just laughs and calls both Porosjenko, and the other current candidate, Julia Timoshenko, the past candidates. He is sure that he can beat them both 31. march.
– People are tired of the old garden, ” he says, and a poll last week shows that he has 21,9 per cent, while the Timoshenko have 19,2 and Porosjenko 14.8 per cent. The other 34 candidates are far behind.
14.8 per CENT: President Petro Porosjenko, here together with his wife, Maryana, during the start of the election campaign in Kiev on Saturday. Photo: Reuters/NTB Scanpix. Show more back man ?
His rivals attempts to discredit him by pointing to his business relations with the powerful banker Ihor Kolomojskij who moved abroad after a conflict with the Porosjenko. They claim that Kolomojskij control him.
But it rejects Zelenskij, even though he announced his candidacy new year’s eve on TV-the channel that sends satireserien his, and owned by Kolomojskij, at the same time as other channels sent Porosjenkos nyttårstale.
Russian speaking
Zelenskij was born in the industrial town Kryvyij Rih when Ukraine was still part of the Soviet union. The native language of his Russian, something that makes him attractive in the Russian-speaking Eastern Ukraine.
He started skuespillkarrieren while his studied law and quickly became a popular standupkomiker, and in 2003 he did his komikerlag to a production company, block 95.
19,2 per CENT: Ukraine’s former prime minister Julia Timoshenko, here in conversation with prime minister Erna Solberg in Dublin in 2014, scoring the second highest in the last poll before the presidential elections in Ukraine. Photo: Anne Marte Vestbakke, NTB Scanpix. Show more
Zelenskijs easy charm and quick wit was evident during the interview, which was made in a break during the recording of the TV-series his. But he made it clear that it is neither a joke or a PR stunt that he set for the election.
Poverty
On the contrary pointed him in that low salaries and poor public support, has led to poverty and the escape of ukrainians seeking better living conditions abroad.
– We need competitive salaries that ukrainians can have self-confidence, ” he says.
the Ukraine is hit by a sharp decline in living standards since Russia occupied the Crimean peninsula in 2014 and separatistopprøret started in Eastern Ukraine after the then russiskvennlige the president was deposed.
Zelenskij call the uprising in the Donbass region, where over 10,000 people are killed and the country’s industrial heart laid desolate, for the Ukraine’s biggest challenge. But he insists that Ukraine must have returned to Crimea and Donbass.
(NTB – AP).
21,9 per CENT: Comedian and presidential candidate Volodim Zelenskij tops the latest poll ahead of the presidential elections in Ukraine. Here below a humorforestilling Saturday in the city of Uzhhorod. Photo: Sergey Gudak, AFP/NTB Scanpix. Show more
