--- title: "\"Democracy cannot be a hostage\": Mikhail Fedorov calls for elections to be held during wartime" description: "πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡¦ Former Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov has called for elections to be held in Ukraine during wartime. According to him, democracy cannot be a hostage of Russia, and the right to vote must be available to all citizens, including military personnel and refugees. The politician also pointed to a crisis of trust in the authorities due to bureaucracy and the opacity of decision-making. #elections #Ukraine #Fedorov #politics" date: 2026-08-18T19:16:00.000Z lang: en url: https://xab.info/en/posts/mikhail-fedorov-calls-for-elections-to-be-held-during-wartime tags: [ukraine, mikhail-fedorov, elections, war, democracy, zelensky] publisher: "XAB.info" --- # "Democracy cannot be a hostage": Mikhail Fedorov calls for elections to be held during wartime ![Mykhailo Fedorov in a blue t-shirt with the 'PostSra' logo against a wooden panel, discussing elections during wartime](https://xab.info/media/2026/08/18/mikhail-fedorov-prizval-provesti-vybory-v-usloviyakh-voyny/mikhail-fedorov-prizval-provesti-vybory-v-usloviyakh-voyny-1.webp) ## 🎯 Key Points - Mikhail Fedorov stated the need to hold elections during wartime - The right to vote must be guaranteed to all Ukrainians, including military personnel and refugees - The former minister pointed to a crisis of trust in the authorities due to bureaucracy and the opacity of decisions - Fedorov believes that democracy cannot be a hostage of Russia Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov has stated the need to create a mechanism for holding elections in the country amidst the ongoing war. In his view, the right to vote must be guaranteed to all Ukrainians, regardless of their current location or status. The politician announced this on his YouTube channel, as reported by RBC-Ukraine citing his words. ### Democracy as the top priority Fedorov emphasized that Russia must not have the right to determine when Ukrainians can once again choose their government. "Democracy cannot be a hostage of Russia," he stated. According to him, Ukraine is fighting precisely to remain a free European state. Therefore, in the opinion of the former minister, it is necessary to find a legal, safe, and realistic mechanism that will allow the full democratic process to resume even if the war continues for a long time. ### Key voter groups Fedorov paid special attention to the need to ensure the right to vote for several key categories of citizens. First and foremost, this concerns military personnel who are at the front line. He also noted the importance of providing the opportunity to vote for millions of Ukrainians forced to live abroad, as well as residents of frontline regions where the situation remains tense. According to him, ignoring the interests of these groups is unacceptable for the healthy development of the state. ### Crisis of trust in the authorities The former minister drew attention to the growing dissatisfaction of citizens who do not understand the logic behind certain decisions made in the country. "People cannot live indefinitely in a state where they do not know why certain decisions are made, why some reforms move forward while others are blocked," Fedorov said. He also pointed to the problem of bureaucracy, where decisions needed at the front spend months moving through offices. Against this background, in his opinion, people get the feeling that the main criterion for officials is not professionalism, but loyalty to the system. ### Historical context and challenges Fedorov reminded that Ukraine has already done many things that the world considered impossible. He expressed confidence that a solution can be found in the current situation as well. However, experts note that the implementation of this idea is fraught with serious logistical and security challenges. Nevertheless, the very fact of discussing this topic at a high level indicates that the issue of holding elections is becoming one of the central items on the country's political agenda. ## πŸ” Fact-Check Verification - [Two "Ukraines": Syrsky and Fedorov must cooperate if they want to outpace Russia – Bloomberg](https://www.unian.net/war/mihail-fedorov-obozrevatel-obyasnil-pochemu-zelenskiy-dolzhen-vosstanovit-ego-v-dolzhnosti-13450818.html) - Π˜ΡΡ‚ΠΎΡ‡Π½ΠΈΠΊ ΠΏΠΎΠ΄Ρ‚Π²Π΅Ρ€ΠΆΠ΄Π°Π΅Ρ‚ контСкст ΠΊΠΎΠ½Ρ„Π»ΠΈΠΊΡ‚Π° ΠΌΠ΅ΠΆΠ΄Ρƒ Π€Π΅Π΄ΠΎΡ€ΠΎΠ²Ρ‹ΠΌ ΠΈ Бырским, Π½ΠΎ Π½Π΅ содСрТит прямых ΠΏΡ€ΠΎΡ‚ΠΈΠ²ΠΎΡ€Π΅Ρ‡ΠΈΠΉ ΠΏΠΎ Ρ‚Π΅ΠΌΠ΅ Π²Ρ‹Π±ΠΎΡ€ΠΎΠ². - [Mikhail Fedorov's resignation: protests, conflict with Syrsky, and questions regarding Zelensky's personnel policy](https://www.rfi.fr/ru/%D1%83%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%B0/20260716-%D0%BE%D1%82%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BA%D0%B0-%D0%BC%D0%B8%D1%85%D0%B0%D0%B8%D0%BB%D0%B0-%D1%84%D0%B5%D0%B4%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B0-%D0%BF%D1%80%D0%BE%D1%82%D0%B5%D1%81%D1%82%D1%8B-%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%84%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%BA%D1%82-%D1%81-%D1%81%D1%8B%D1%80%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%BC-%D0%B8-%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%BF%D1%80%D0%BE%D1%81%D1%8B-%D0%BA-%D0%BA%D0%B0%D0%B4%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B9-%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%BB%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B5-%D0%B7%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B3%D0%BE) - Π˜ΡΡ‚ΠΎΡ‡Π½ΠΈΠΊ ΠΏΠΎΠ΄Ρ‚Π²Π΅Ρ€ΠΆΠ΄Π°Π΅Ρ‚ Ρ„Π°ΠΊΡ‚ отставки Π€Π΅Π΄ΠΎΡ€ΠΎΠ²Π° ΠΈ контСкст Π΅Π³ΠΎ политичСской активности, Π½ΠΎ Π½Π΅ содСрТит прямых ΠΏΡ€ΠΎΡ‚ΠΈΠ²ΠΎΡ€Π΅Ρ‡ΠΈΠΉ ΠΏΠΎ Ρ‚Π΅ΠΌΠ΅ Π²Ρ‹Π±ΠΎΡ€ΠΎΠ². ## ❓ FAQ ### Q: Why does Mikhail Fedorov consider it important to hold elections during wartime? **A:** Fedorov believes that democracy cannot be a hostage of Russia, and the right to vote must be available to all Ukrainians, regardless of their current location or status. ### Q: Which groups of citizens should have the right to vote according to Fedorov? **A:** According to Fedorov, the right to vote must be guaranteed to military personnel, millions of Ukrainians abroad, and residents of frontline regions. ### Q: What problems in the work of the authorities does Fedorov point out? **A:** Fedorov points to bureaucracy, the opacity of decision-making, and the feeling that the main criterion for officials is not professionalism, but loyalty to the system.