When Ukraine elects the president the last of march, one can only be sure of one thing: Nothing is clear in advance.
the Ukrainian elections are always full of surprises. In this year’s presidential election, called the biggest surprise Volodymyr Zelenskyj, an actor and comedian who can’t be anything about policy. However, he is all about show business, and satire.
– IN the united states, they have also had actors who became presidents! And they became very successful. Why not try? Worse, it can’t be, ” said 28-year-old Olga Vojtova.
I meet her while she takes a rökpaus outside klädbutiken that she manages in the north of Kiev. Olga intend to vote on the Zelenskyj – because he stands outside the system.
– Yes, he lacks experience. But now is the main thing an alternation of power. Over half of my salary goes towards paying electricity and gas. Everything has become terribly expensive. People are leaving the country, the war in the east continues. We are terrified that nothing should be changed, says Olga Vojtova.
Olga Vojtova. Photo: Anders Hansson
Volodymyr Fesenko has the Ukrainian voters have never been so disappointed in their politicians.
– About half of the voters say that they do not trust anyone. This is the highest figure in the 27 years of independence. All candidates, including Zelenskyj, have a higher percentage of voters who trust them than the other way around, ” says Fesenko, who leads the think-tank Penta, in Kiev.
the Disappointment has, according to Fesenko to do with two things: Dashed hopes after Eurorevolutionen on the Majdan in 2014-2015 and that the cost of living rises.
A whole series of scandals, framgrävda of the year Ukrainian press, proves that the country’s political elite remains deeply corrupt. It is the main cause of the Volodymyr Zelenskyj, a Russian-speaking comedians from the industrial city of Kryvyi Rih, sailing forward as a new opportunity.
participated in the policies, never involved themselves in civic affairs. But he is the main character in a tv series that has over five million views on Youtube. It’s called Shrewd naroda (People’s servant) and is about how an unknown secondary school teacher, suddenly becomes the president.
” the Story goes ahead of the reality. It is a global trend, ” says Volodymyr Fesenko.
According to the latest opinion poll from the beginning of march is Zelenskyj one before the presidential election with 24.7 percent, followed by Yulia Tymoshenko with 18.3 per cent and Petro Porosjenko with 16.8 percent. It is a perfect sensation in a country where the same politicians and businessmen have dominated politics for almost two decades.
What Zelenskyj really want to know no. He rarely position on political issues, and adhering not to any ideology. His campaign is to be the person outside the system.
Volodymyr Zelenskyj. Photo: Anders Hansson
is pro-european, which is the mainstream in today’s Ukraine. As with a majority of ukrainians is he for EU membership- but want it to be subject to a referendum. He is also the Nato, but requires that the people shall vote on it.
– We believe in direct democracy, citizens ‘ initiatives and referendums. In addition, we want voters to have the opportunity to stop the proposal in parliament, said Ruslan Stefantjuk, a law professor and legal adviser to the Zelenskyj.
Ruslan Stefantjuk. Photo: Anders Hansson
I hit the Stefantjuk on Zelenskijs staff in Kiev. The office is located in a large villa in a fashionable street, where several foreign embassies have their addresses. It has glass walls and a large modern meeting space where young kampanjarbetare sitting and working on their laptops.
The majority of Ukrainian politicians are sponsored by an oligarch. Zelenskyj have close contacts to Ihor Kolomojskyj, which owns the tv channel 1+1, where Zelenskyjs tv-series are displayed. Kolomojskyj are right now in self-imposed exile in Israel.
” I know nothing about who finances this office. But I know that Kolomojskyj is required Zelenskyj significantly more than the other way around. It is thanks to his popular series as it is good for the tv channel, ” says Ruslan Stefantjuk.
in contact with Zelenskyjs team is not difficult. However, it is virtually impossible to get close to him yourself. He gives very few interviews, do not participate in the election debates, and rarely meet their voters in reality. The entire campaign is almost one hundred percent online, and his only performances occur on the stage when he gives his live shows.
Volodymyr Zelenskyj. Photo: Anders Hansson
When we go on Zelenskyjs show in Ukrainapalatset in Kiev is the auditorium crowded. The show is predictable. The jokes on women who do not understand football and the Ukrainian politicians who buy votes. The audience vrålgarvar.
the Strategy is obvious – Zelenskyj simply continues with what he can do best, namely to make fun of their opponents.
Russian tv-series Russian-speaking, and on stage he acts always in Russian. Ukrainian, he mastered not as good. Despite this, he has an equally great support of the Ukrainian – who of Russian-speaking voters.
– It is especially for Zelenskyj. He is one of the few Ukrainian politicians who don’t have their ushered a major period in one specific region, social class or language group. He appeals to voters across the spectrum, but most of all young voters under the age of 35, ” says Fesenko.
The latter factor is also Zelenskyjs achilles heel, because young people are not votes as diligently as the elderly.
Yulia Tymoshenko Photo: Anders Hansson
take it to the second round of the presidential elections is very likely. The question is who he should be set against. Second and third is the opposition Yulia Tymoshenko or president Petro Porosjenko. Various opinion polls give them between 16 and 18 percent.
Tymoshenko ushered a major period of pensioners and low income earners. Porosjenko has received more votes on the right then he began a pronounced conservative, nationalist campaign. It received a blow after a corruption scandal in February that involved his business partner By the Hladkovskyj.
Porosjenko hold rally in Kiev. Photo: Anders Hansson
the Year 2015 of ” the Porosjenko his friend Hladkovskyj to the chairman of the national security and defence council in the year 2015, despite the fact that he lacked experience in the field. In February, journalistgruppen Nashi Grosji (Our money) to Hladkovskyjs son Ihor had smuggled second-hand military equipment from Russia and sold on to the Ukrainian army to the inflated prices. The scandal was huge, because Ukraine practically are at war with Russia.
have nationalistgrupperingar arranged regular manifestations and systematically persecuting Porosjenkos valturné. The president has been forced to end their rallies in early, and the 9 march affected the nationalists together with the police outside the president administration.
While we are in Kiev will arrange the nationalists a demonstration against corruption on the Majdan. The driving force is National corpus, a extremhögerparti which was founded out of the frivilligbataljonen Azov.
Kateryna Dunjak. Photo: Anders Hansson
the Participants of the manifestation are not only hard-line nationalists. Side by side with masked young men are ordinary retirees. One of them is Kateryna Dunjak, as DN’s photographer Anders Hansson and I met last year. She is the mother of the murdered human rights lawyer, Iryna Nozdrovska and accusing Porosjenkos ”banditvälde” that her daughter was murdered.
” Our leaders must resign! It is the only way to get justice! she shouts from the stage.
For many ukrainians is precisely the change of power the main thing.
the Fight takes all the energy. Get time to think about what will ago.
