Ukrainian President's Office preparing Constitutional Court submission regarding Zelenskyy's further legitimacy

The President's Office of Ukraine has drafted a submission to the Constitutional Court regarding the legitimacy of Volodymyr Zelenskyy's tenure as Ukraine's president, which expires this spring, but it has yet to submit it, ZN.UA reports.

Source: ZN.UA

Details: Under the Ukrainian Constitution (Article 103.5), the next presidential election in Ukraine should take place on 31 March 2024, since the Constitution established a five-year term (Article 103.1), and on 20 May 2024 it will be five years since Volodymyr Zelenskyy's inauguration.

The President's Office is currently working on how to resolve the issue that will arise on 20 May, according to ZN.UA.

One of the options the President's Office is considering is filing a request with the Constitutional Court, including a submission on the official interpretation of the Constitution's provisions governing regular presidential elections and the president's five-year term.

According to sources in the Ukrainian President’s Office, the Office has drafted a submission to the Constitutional Court. They want to ask the court some questions. The first is whether the Constitution authorises presidential elections during martial law. The Constitutional Court's response to this question should clarify whether the ban on holding elections under martial law, as outlined in the Electoral Code and legislation on martial law, is constitutional.

The second question concerns the legitimacy of the president's powers after his five-year term expires, i.e. after 20 May.

According to the Office's plan, if it is decided to lodge this submission with the Constitutional Court, this will be done by the MPs from the Servant of the People party, the ruling party in the Ukrainian Parliament. However, the MPs of the presidential faction have yet to receive the submission.

As of 27 February, the final decision on whether such a constitutional submission would be appropriate had not been made, ZN.UA says.

The Constitutional Court has confirmed to Ukrainska Pravda that they have not yet received any such document from the President’s Office.

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