Ukraine sets October 28 parliamentary election calendar

Ukraine’s Central Election Commission released a tentative calendar for conducting the October 28 parliamentary election. Key dates include July 30 (official start for campaigning, first date candidates can be nominated), August 9 (last date candidates can be nominated), October 26 (end of campaigning) and November 12 (date official results must be finalized).

Brad Wells: The calendar is pretty standard fare for a nationwide Ukrainian election and is exactly in line with our expectations (see our 2012 Politics Preview note from December 2011). Notably, campaigning is due to start less than a month after the Euro-2012 final in Kyiv (July 1), with the ruling Party of Regions hoping a successful event will bode well for its popularity. However, the opposition looks like it might pull out an upset as the 27-member European Commission has already pledged to boycott matches in Ukraine and Tymoshenko protestors have already entrenched in two of Ukraine’s four host cities (in Kyiv outside the court where she was sentenced last year and in Kharkiv where she is currently being held). This sets the stage for a significant amount of less-than-flattering international attention on the current government’s respect for the rule of law and persecution of political opponents.