| Country: | Ukraine |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Ongoing: | yes |
| Previous Election: | 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election |
| Previous Year: | 2019 |
| Election Date: | Date not announced |
| Seats For Election: | All 450 (possibly 300) seats in the Verkhovna Rada |
| Majority Seats: | 226 (possibly 151) |
| Opinion Polls: | Opinion polling for the next Ukrainian parliamentary election |
| Outgoing Members: | List of members of the parliament of Ukraine, 2019– |
| Leader1: | Olena Shuliak |
| Party1: | Servant of the People |
| Leader Since1: | 15 November 2021 |
| Last Election1: | 254 seats, 43.16% |
| Seats Before1: | 235 |
| Leader2: | Petro Poroshenko |
| Party2: | European Solidarity |
| Leader Since2: | 31 May 2019 |
| Last Election2: | 25 seats, 8.11% |
| Seats Before2: | 27 |
| Leader3: | Yulia Tymoshenko |
| Party3: | Batkivshchyna |
| Leader Since3: | 9 July 1999 |
| Last Election3: | 26 seats, 8.19% |
| Seats Before3: | 24 |
| Leader4: | Yuriy Boyko |
| Party4: | Platform for Life and Peace |
| Leader Since4: | 21 April 2022 |
| Last Election4: | 43 seats, 13.06% |
| Seats Before4: | 22 |
| Leader5: | Kira Rudik |
| Party5: | Holos (political party) |
| Leader Since5: | 12 March 2020 |
| Last Election5: | 20 seats, 5.83% |
| Seats Before5: | 20 |
| Leader6: | Oleh Kulinich |
| Party6: | Dovira |
| Leader Since6: | 6 December 2019 |
| Last Election6: | New |
| Seats Before6: | 19 |
| Leader7: | Ihor Palytsia |
| Party7: | For the Future |
| Leader Since7: | 20 May 2020 |
| Last Election7: | New |
| Seats Before7: | 17 |
| Party8: | Restoration of Ukraine |
| Leader Since8: | 8 December 2023 |
| Last Election8: | New |
| Seats Before8: | 16 |
| Popular Vote8: | 9 |
| Prime Minister | |
| Before Election: | Denys Shmyhal |
| Before Party: | Independent politician |
Parliamentary elections are expected to take place in Ukraine to elect members of the Verkhovna Rada after the end of the Russo-Ukrainian War.[1] According to the Ukrainian electoral code,[2] the electoral process should start within a month from the cancellation of the state of martial law that was introduced in 2022 following the Russian invasion. The previous parliamentary election in Ukraine was held on 21 July 2019.[3]
The previous parliamentary elections in 2019 were snap ones, called in July instead of the regular constitutionally-prescribed late October date. The first meeting of the elected deputies took place on 29 August 2019.[4] According to Article 77 of the Constitution, regular elections to the Verkhovna Rada (the parliament of Ukraine) take place on the last Sunday of October of the fifth year of parliamentary powers. Thus, if not for the war, the regular parliamentary elections would have taken place on 29 October 2023.[5] [6]
In 2021, there were rumors that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would call for snap elections in 2021, but also that he could use a provision to "collide" parliament's term with the 2024 Ukrainian presidential election.[7]
Elections are not allowed under martial law in Ukraine.[8] Article 10 of Ukraine's "On the Legal Regime of Martial Law", adopted in 2015, stipulates that the powers of the president, parliament, and Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine cannot be terminated under martial law,[9] while Article 19 bans presidential, parliamentary, and local elections;[10] [11] Article 19 of the previous version of the law adopted in 2000 included the same provision.[12] Martial law in Ukraine has been in effect since 24 February 2022, in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[13]
According to Article 83 of the Constitution, if the five-year authority of the Verkhovna Rada expires while martial law is in effect, its authority is extended until the first meeting of the next convocation of the Verkhovna Rada elected after the end of martial law.[14] Electoral rights are not listed in Article 64 of the Constitution among the rights and freedoms that cannot be withheld in the state of martial law.[14]
A survey conducted by the Razumkov Centre in September 2023 showed that only 15% of those surveyed supported holding elections during wartime, while 64% were against.[15] Similarly, a September 2023 survey conducted by Rating for the International Republican Institute, 62% replied that considering the war, if a decision about the necessity of elections is to be made, the elections should begin to be held only after the war, even if this means waiting even longer [than March 2025].[16] A poll released by KIIS in November 2023 reported that 81% of Ukrainians did not want presidential or parliamentary elections until the war was over.[17]
On 22 June 2023, President Zelenskyy announced that the elections would not be held as scheduled in 2023 due to ongoing martial law, and would be held in 2024 only if martial law ended by then.[18] On 17 August 2023, martial law was extended for a further 90 days until 15 November 2023, which means the election could not take place on 29 October 2023 as originally planned.[19] In November 2023, all political parties represented in the Verkhovna Rada signed a memorandum in which they agreed to postpone holding elections until after martial law has ended.[20]
On 1 January 2020 the latest revision of the electoral code of Ukraine took effect. It states that all deputies are elected on a party list in one nationwide constituency with a 5% election threshold with open regional lists of candidates for deputies.[21] The new election law abolishes the single-member constituency system used since the 2012 parliamentary election. Under the previous system, the 450 members of the Verkhovna Rada were elected by two methods; 225 by closed list proportional representation in a nationwide constituency with a 5% threshold, and 225 in single-member constituencies by first-past-the-post voting.[22]
On 4 February 2020, the parliament approved in the first reading (with 236 votes) a presidential bill to reduce the number of parliamentary deputies from 450 to 300. To do so, the Ukrainian Constitution needs to be altered, and this will require at least 300 parliamentary votes.[23]
The table below lists parties currently represented in the Verkhovna Rada.[24]
| Parties | Leader(s) | Parliamentary leader(s) | Ideology | Position | Seats | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Last election | Before election | |||||||
| Servant of the People | Olena Shuliak | Davyd Arakhamia | Centrism | Centre | ||||
| European Solidarity | Petro Poroshenko | Iryna Herashchenko Artur Herasymov | Liberal conservatism | |||||
| Batkivshchyna | Yulia Tymoshenko | Conservatism | ||||||
| Platform for Life and Peace | Yuriy Boyko | Social democracy[25] | Centre-left | Did not exist | ||||
| Holos | Kira Rudyk | Oleksandra Ustinova | Liberalism | |||||
| Dovira | Olena Kyivets | Oleh Kulinich | Regionalism | Centre | Did not exist | |||
| For the Future | Ihor Palytsia | Taras Batenko | Populism | Centre-right | Did not exist | |||
| Restoration of Ukraine | Antonina Slavytska | Did not exist | ||||||
Martial law in Ukraine was declared on 24 February 2022. On 15 March 2022, the Verkhovna Rada deprived opposition MP Illia Kyva of his mandate.[26]
On 20 March 2022, the activities of several political parties were suspended by the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine for the period of martial law:[27] [28]
See main article: Opinion polling for the next Ukrainian parliamentary election.