4 August 2014
Ukraine’s early parliamentary elections will occur sooner than planned if parliament is able to approve the new election law, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko told an August 1 press conference for television reporters. He said he can’t work with a parliament in which half of its member won’t support a vote to recognize the pro-Russian separatists as terrorists, and an entire faction is being directed from abroad, referring to the Party of Regions and its leadership that’s now based in Russia. Poroshenko said he supports the next parliament being selected entirely based on open party lists, as opposed to the current system, in which all the seats are determined by closed party lists.
Some interests are trying to take advantage of the imperfect election law to postpone the elections, he said. “Ukraine doesn’t have time for talking,” Poroshenko said. “If they agree on a proportional system of open lists, let it be so. If they’re not capable of agreeing at all, the candidates will be chosen based on the current legislation. But the elections will occur in any weather.”
Zenon Zawada: Currently, the most likely scenario is the elections will occur in mid-October based on the current system. It’s to Poroshenko’s greater advantage to hold them sooner, when he’s achieved a respectable amount of accomplishments with the war and fatigue has yet to set in on a widescale basis. Either way, his Solidarity party will represent the patronage, or establishment party, which will attract well-financed candidates and donors. So for him, it’s not principally important what electoral system is chosen.