Ukraine elections held for seven parliamentary seats

Elections were held on July 17 for seven seats in the Ukrainian parliament, with voter turnout reaching nearly 36 percent, reported on July 18 the Central Election Commission of Ukraine. Attempts were made to disrupt the vote tally in the election in the Luhansk region, reported the Committee of Voters of Ukraine (CVU), an election-observing organization. Police opened 14 criminal cases there in relation to the vote. Meanwhile, 16 polling stations were alleged to have been mined in the Kherson region, undermining the turnout, the CVU reported.

The populist Fatherland party, among Ukraine’s most popular, claimed this morning mass falsifications in the vote count at various polling stations. In its statement, the party called upon the president “to stop the abuse and lawlessness at the districts.” It also called upon prosecutors and police “to stop being participants in the banditry that is being done by the party in power,” referring to the Petro Poroshenko Bloc.

Zenon Zawada: These elections serve as a valuable barometer of the political climate in Ukraine. The low turnout, which isn’t so bad for a minor election, and the claims of violations come of no surprise. Authorities have yet to cancel the results as a result of these violations.

The main conclusion that can be drawn so far – without knowing the winners yet – is that the rivalry is heating up between the president’s team and the leading opposition force, which is Yulia Tymoshenko and the Fatherland party.