MOSCOW, December 16. /TASS/. Voter registration in the proposed Ukrainian elections will be the biggest hurdle to overcome in organizing the vote, head of the G.O.R.K.I. center at St. Petersburg State University Karin Kneissl told TASS in an interview.
Commenting on US President Donald Trump’s statement about the need to hold elections in Ukraine, she recalled that Vladimir Zelensky’s initial argument against the idea was that "holding elections was impossible because the country was at war." "In response, some American politicians pointed out that elections in the US were also held during wartime. Think what you want about the elections in Syria or Iraq, but in those countries, too, elections were held under very, very difficult conditions," Kneissl stated.
"What is necessary for elections? First and foremost, voter registration - that is, understanding who is on the lists and who is eligible to vote. Many people have fled Ukraine. I suspect that the main problem in holding elections will be voter registration - who is where and who can vote," she noted. "On the one hand, there has been large-scale emigration, on the other, many voters have already died. Therefore, voter registration, in my opinion, is the biggest challenge in moving this process forward."
Equal opportunity for campaigning
In her opinion, voter registration remains the key issue, although it is impossible to predict how long it would take to implement a proper registration process. "Organizing ballot boxes, printing the actual ballots, and opening polling stations - I would say that's a lesser issue. Correct registration is far more important," Kneissl emphasized.
In addition, the former Austrian foreign minister noted that for legitimate elections to take place in Ukraine, all participating parties and candidates need to have an equal opportunity to campaign. "This means they need campaign posters and access to televised debates, although, of course, these days, election campaigns are largely conducted through social media. Nevertheless, posters are still necessary," she explained. "Printing them and making related technical arrangements will undoubtedly be difficult, and this shouldn't be underestimated."
"Another serious problem for parties and candidates in Ukraine, in my opinion, will be access to funding, for example, to have equal airtime," Kneissl added.
On Trump’s statement
On December 9, US President Donald Trump said it was time for elections to be held in Ukraine, arguing that Kiev was using the conflict as a pretext to delay the process. On the same day, Vladimir Zelensky said he was ready to hold presidential elections but stressed that this would require legislative amendments and additional security measures to ensure that members of the military could vote. He called on lawmakers to prepare the necessary legal changes and urged the US and Europe to guarantee the security of the voting process.