Trump Urges Ukraine to Hold Presidential Elections
In a recent interview, President Donald Trump suggested that the moment has arrived for Ukraine to conduct presidential elections.
His comments were made during a conversation with Dasha Burns, Bureau Chief for Politico, at the White House.
“Do you think it’s time for Ukraine to hold elections?” Burns asked Trump in a discussion that lasted around 45 minutes.
“Yes, I think so too. For a long time… it hasn’t gone particularly well. Yes, I think the time has come. I think it’s an important time to hold an election,” Trump responded. “They are using the war to avoid elections, but I believe the Ukrainian people will and should.”
“And likely Mr. Zelensky will win. I can’t say for sure who will win, but they haven’t had elections in quite some time. They talk about democracy, but it’s reached a point where it’s not really a democracy anymore,” he added.
Currently, Ukraine is under martial law due to the ongoing war with Russia, which, according to their laws, prohibits holding elections until martial law is lifted. Elections in Ukraine are planned for 2024.
A poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in October revealed that around 75% of Ukrainians want Zelensky to resign after the war.
KIIS analysts noted that while public support for Zelensky’s wartime leadership remains relatively strong—with 60% of respondents expressing trust in him—the trust level was as high as 90% just after the Russian invasion in February 2022, compared to only 37% before it.
Moreover, 41% of those surveyed believe Zelensky should stay in politics after the war, while just 25% want him to run again. Simultaneously, 36% think he should step away from politics entirely, and 14% suggested he should face legal consequences for certain actions during his presidency, though the poll did not specify any particular crimes.
When asked about Zelensky potentially delaying the resolution of the war, Trump mentioned that the Ukrainian president should review a recent peace plan released over the weekend.
“He probably spent one night reading this book. I hope he reads it. A lot of people are dying, so it would be really nice if he read it,” Trump remarked.
“His team liked the proposal. They were generally in favor of it, but mentioned they haven’t had the chance to read it yet. I think they should make some time for that,” he concluded.
