Could Ukraine hold a presidential election right now, as Trump demands?

Kyiv, Ukraine – United States President Donald Trump bristled astatine a question astir his Ukrainian counterpart connected Wednesday during an interrogation with media outlet Politico. Admonishing Volodymyr Zelenskyy for failing to clasp a statesmanlike election, helium accused him of not ending the warfare with Russia arsenic an excuse to cling to power.

“They speech astir a democracy, but it gets to a constituent wherever it’s not a ideology immoderate more,” Trump told Politico, referring to the presidency of Zelenskyy who was elected successful April 2019 with much than 70 percent of the vote, but whose five-year word would, nether mean circumstances, person expired successful 2024.

There is simply a crushed he’s inactive there, though. The Ukrainian constitution bans wartime elections, and Russia’s 2022 full-scale penetration volition participate its 5th twelvemonth successful February 2026.

Hours aft Trump’s remarks, Zelenskyy responded, saying helium was “ready” to clasp an predetermination – arsenic agelong arsenic Washington and, perhaps, Brussels could guarantee its security.

“I’m asking – and present declaring it openly – the United States to assistance me, possibly on with European colleagues, to supply information for holding the vote,” Zelenskyy said. “I person the volition and readiness for that.”

So wherefore is Trump raising this contented now, and would it adjacent beryllium imaginable to clasp an predetermination during a war?

Is Trump repeating Russian talking points?

Trump is so “playing along” with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Lieutenant General Ihor Romanenko, erstwhile lawman caput of Ukraine’s wide unit of equipped forces, told Al Jazeera.

Putin and his ministers person agelong called Zelenskyy “illegitimate” and dubbed his authorities a “neo-Nazi junta” successful an effort to pit mean Ukrainians against the “brotherly” Russian nation.

Last month, Trump unveiled a 28-point bid plan for Ukraine with abbreviated and vague clauses which connection fewer information guarantees for Kyiv and are wide seen arsenic a Moscow privation list. Crucially, the program would impact Ukraine ceding onshore already mislaid to Russia during the war, a enactment that Zelenskyy has repeatedly said helium volition not cross.

“Trump doesn’t attraction what’s going to hap to Ukraine and Ukrainians, what’s much important to him is that the warfare is settled somehow, and helium tin amusement his enactment and effect to Ukraine and to Europeans,” Romanenko said.

Civilian observers agree.

“The Kremlin offered an ultimatum via Trump, and Ukraine refused,” Kyiv-based expert Igar Tyshkevych told Al Jazeera.

And now, observers say, Trump is seeking to settee Europe’s bloodiest struggle since World War II earlier his upcoming acme with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“Otherwise Trump volition person to consult Xi, and that contradicts his conception of America First and Make America Great Again,” Tyshkevych said.

That’s wherefore the upcoming 2 months volition beryllium “very complicated” for Ukraine arsenic Washington is apt to frantically propulsion for a bid deal, helium said.

[Al Jazeera]

What are the hurdles an predetermination would face?

Zelenskyy said connected Wednesday that Trump’s proposition of him clinging to the presidency were “frankly, wholly unreasonable”. He added that helium would inquire his Public Servant party, which dominates the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s little location of parliament, to draught a instrumentality to let voting during martial law.

However, practically, it could beryllium highly hard to clasp an predetermination successful Ukraine now.

In February, Zelenskyy and his officials besides responded to Trump’s demands that they clasp a statesmanlike vote. They insisted it couldn’t beryllium held portion Moscow pummelled Ukrainian cities with drones and missiles and occupied astir one-fifth of Ukraine.

Ukrainian nationals successful occupied areas are taxable to abduction, torture and adjacent decease for taking an anti-Russian stance and, therefore, could not perchance instrumentality portion successful immoderate vote.

An predetermination would apt beryllium a logistical nightmare arsenic millions of Ukrainians person been displaced oregon fled to Europe oregon different nations wherever embassies and consulates would not beryllium capable to grip the measurement of voters.

The hours-long blackouts each implicit Ukraine, which travel Moscow’s pinpointed, repeated strikes connected Ukrainian powerfulness procreation and transmission infrastructure, would marque an predetermination adjacent much hard to hold.

A transportation courier uses his motorcycle airy to illuminate during a powerfulness blackout aft captious civilian infrastructure was deed by caller Russian rocket and drone attacks successful Kyiv, Ukraine, connected December 9, 2025 [Gleb Garanich/Reuters]

Who would guarantee voters’ safety?

Only Washington’s afloat committedness to interfere militarily if Russia were to interruption a ceasefire could warrant security, expert Tyshkevych said.

But that’s a measurement that Washington has not taken and is not apt to instrumentality now, helium added. “I hardly ideate information guarantees that volition guarantee the information of the predetermination without ending the war.”

A household looks astatine their location that was damaged during a nighttime of Russian rocket and drone strikes successful Novi Petrivtsi, extracurricular Kyiv, Ukraine, connected December 6, 2025 [Thomas Peter/Reuters]

How soon could an predetermination beryllium held?

Even if Kyiv begins preparations for a vote, it apt could not beryllium held overmuch earlier than March 2026.

The Verkhovna Rada volition instrumentality respective weeks to draft, taxable and ballot successful a instrumentality allowing the election. Election authorities would past instrumentality respective much weeks to o.k. each candidates and let them to campaign. All earlier timelines are “fantasy,” Tyshkevych said.

Would soldiers beryllium capable to vote?

Kyiv did clasp statesmanlike and parliamentary elections aft 2014, erstwhile Russia annexed Crimea and backed a separatist uprising successful the southeastern Donbas region.

But the hostilities were constricted to Donbas and were labelled “an anti-terrorism operation” that did not necessitate martial instrumentality to beryllium imposed connected Ukraine.

Servicemen were capable ballot – but astir did not importune connected participating, Lieutenant General Romanenko said.

This time, securing the ballot of hundreds of thousands of servicemen would beryllium near-impossible without a stable, months-long ceasefire, helium added.

A truce would person to warrant each serviceman’s accidental to formed a ballot – oregon hazard triggering an uproar among them. “They volition request afloat participation,” Romanenko said.

What bash Ukrainians accidental astir holding an election?

Most Ukrainians are opposed to holding an predetermination without a unchangeable bid colony successful place.

In September, 63 percent of those surveyed opposed holding a ballot adjacent instantly aft a ceasefire, according to a survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology.

Only 22 percent believed elections could beryllium held successful the aftermath of a ceasefire with information guarantees, the canvass said.

“Now is not the time,” Mykola Chernenko, a 29-year-old income manager astatine an electronics store successful Kyiv, told Al Jazeera. “We person to absorption connected ending the war, and volition benignant each the authorities retired later,” helium said.

Would Zelenskyy beryllium re-elected?

Zelenskyy’s support ratings soared supra 80 percent successful the contiguous aftermath of the full-scale penetration by Russia successful 2022.

However, his popularity has diminished since. Valerii Zaluzhnyi, a burly, taciturn apical commandant and four-star wide whom Zelenskyy fired successful aboriginal 2024 is Ukraine’s astir fashionable person these days.

Some 73 percent of Ukrainians polled successful July said they spot Zaluzhny, according to the Rating Sociological Group, a Kyiv pollster.

Zaluzhny, who present serves arsenic ambassador to the United Kingdom, has mostly refrained from making immoderate nationalist remarks connected the matter.

The aforesaid canvass recovered that Zelenskyy is trusted by 65 percent of Ukrainians, portion 29 percent said they “distrust” him.

A scandal, which unfolded past period implicit the alleged engagement of Zelenskyy’s adjacent allies successful a corruption strategy linked to atomic powerfulness generation, is apt to dampen his popularity further successful the energy-starved nation.

Are elections allowed successful different countries during war?

Two years aft the full-scale invasion, Russia held a statesmanlike predetermination – adjacent though hostilities were raging successful 4 partly-occupied Ukrainian regions, which Moscow declared portion of its territory successful September 2022.

Many Ukrainians successful occupied areas were forced to formed their ballots nether duress, and Putin predictably won with 88 percent of the vote.

But Moscow ne'er openly declared martial instrumentality and stubbornly dubs its penetration of Ukraine “a peculiar subject operation”. Anyone who calls it a “war” faces fines, apprehension oregon Kremlin-orchestrated trials.

Other ex-Soviet nations person held statesmanlike elections during ongoing, yet frozen, equipped conflicts – notably, Armenia and Azerbaijan, whose struggle implicit Nagorno-Karabakh began successful 1988 and ended successful 2023.

Iraq and Afghanistan besides held statesmanlike and parliamentary elections during progressive home conflicts.