Fedorov calls for wartime elections in challenge to Zelenskiy

Kyiv, Ukraine. Former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov called for wartime elections in a video address on Tuesday, citing what he described as a crisis of governance in Ukraine.

Call for elections

Fedorov said Ukraine needed to renew its democratic process despite the continuing war with Russia.

“Democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia,” Fedorov said in the address posted on YouTube. “We must find a legal, safe and realistic mechanism that will allow Ukraine to renew its full democratic process even in the conditions of a long war.”

Ukrainian law prohibits elections during wartime. Fedorov’s demand was the first by a major Ukrainian political figure since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022.

Dismissal and military dispute

The 35-year-old Fedorov, a longtime ally of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, was dismissed from the Defence Ministry in July, six months after his appointment, during which he had promised sweeping reforms.

After his dismissal, Fedorov publicly criticised armed forces commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskyi, exposing a dispute over their differing approaches to the war.

Zelenskiy said Fedorov had been dismissed because he could not work with Syrskyi. The president later dismissed the military chief following public pressure.

Protests and political implications

Thousands of Ukrainians protested to demand Syrskyi’s dismissal and Fedorov’s reinstatement. Critics had blamed Syrskyi, an old-guard military commander, for heavy troop losses on the front line.

Protests supporting Fedorov have continued for the past month. Although participation has declined from its early levels, demonstrations in Kyiv have continued to draw several thousand people.

Fedorov did not say whether he would stand in any election. A recent poll indicated that he would defeat Zelenskiy in a runoff vote between the two leading presidential candidates.

New defence minister nominee

Fedorov’s statement came hours after Zelenskiy confirmed that he had asked parliament to approve Yevhenii Khmara as the new defence minister on Wednesday.