Zelenskyy Faces Pressure to Hold Elections. What Stands in the Way?

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy looks to his Serbian counterpart, Aleksandar Vucic, during a welcome ceremony at the Serbia Palace, in Belgrade, Serbia, on Aug.

8, 2026. —Darko Vojinovic—AP Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is facing a major internal political challenge after a recently dismissed defense minister called for a wartime presidential election.

But holding an election during an ongoing war would pose enormous legal and logistical challenges—and it may not be possible at all.

Ex-Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov 's challenge comes amid an ongoing war with Russia.

While Zelenskyy’s five-year term was scheduled to end in May 2024, elections have been suspended under martial law since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Fedorov posted a nine-minute video online Tuesday, demanding that Ukraine “restore a full democratic process even amid a prolonged war.” Read More: Chalk One Up for Ukraine “Democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia.

We are fighting precisely because we want to remain a free European state,” Fedorov said.

“We must find a legal, safe, and ‌realistic mechanism which will allow Ukraine to renew its full democratic process even in the conditions of ​a long war.” Fedorov, 35, was a longtime ally of Zelenskyy before he was abruptly fired in July amid mounting friction with military leadership, and his departure sparked days of protests.

On Wednesday, Yevhenii Khmara was confirmed as the new defense minister.

Although Fedorov did not mention Zelenskyy in the video, he issued a blistering critique of Ukrainian leadership, saying that the country is in a “systemic crisis of governance” and alluding to corruption.

The accusation comes just after Zelenskyy fired deputy chief of staff Iryna Mudra on Wednesday amid a money-laundering investigation .

This is not the first time that Zelenskyy has come under fire for the suspended elections.

Last year, President Donald Trump attacked him as a “dictator without elections.” However, the Ukrainian President has steadfastly denied that he is using the war to cling to power and said he would be open to an election if it could be safely and securely held.

“I am now asking—and I am stating this openly—for the United States, possibly together with our European colleagues, to help me ensure security for holding elections,” he told reporters on WhatsApp at the end of 2025 .