Two Candidates Standing: Ukraine Presidential Election Update

Discussants

• Olha Aivazovska, Head of Elections and Parliamentary Programs, Civil Network OPORA (from Kyiv)
• Oleksiy Haran, Research Director, Democratic Initiatives Foundation (from Kyiv)
• Halyna Petrenko, Director, Detector Media (from Kyiv)

Moderator

• Vasyl Babych, Head of International Relations, Reanimation Package of Reforms (from Kyiv)
• Jonathan Katz, Senior Fellow, The German Marshall Fund of the United States (from Washington)
• Bruno Lete, Senior Fellow, The German Marshall Fund of the United States (from Brussels)

Please join us for a special meeting of the Transatlantic Task Force on Elections and Civil Society in Ukraine focused on the second round of Ukraine’s Presidential election on April 21. On March 31, Ukrainians went to the polls to vote in a crowded and hotly contested presidential field. The outcome was close as expected with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Petro Poroshenko receiving the highest proportions of the vote. Polling before the election highlighted voters' frustration with Ukrainian goverment efforts to combat corruption, turn the economy around and resolve the ongoing conflict in the East. Please join us as the Task Force and participants discuss the outcome of the March 31st election, including election conduct, Russian interference, Ukrainian voter priorities, and the final round of the presidential election. With only two remaining, what are the Ukrainian presidential candidates emphasizing to win the vote and set the stage for Ukraine’s next steps five years after the Maidan.

The Transatlantic Task Force on Elections and Civil Society in Ukraine was established by the Friends of Ukraine Network (FOUN) Democracy and Civil Society Task Force, an initiative of the U.S.-Ukraine Foundation, and Reanimation Package of Reforms (RPR) to provide a platform for stronger U.S.–EU–Ukrainian engagement and information sharing prior to the upcoming Ukrainian presidential election in March 2019 and parliamentary election in October 2019.

Civil society organizations that have joined the task force include Transparency International Ukraine, Centre for Democracy and Rule of Law, Centre for Policy and Legal Reform, OPORA Civil Network, Democratic Initiatives Foundation, DEJURE Foundation, EIDOS Center, Centre for Economic Strategy, Anti-Corruption Action Centre, and Centre UA. The initiative has also been joined by the Brussels mission of the Ukrainian World Congress and the German Marshall Fund in Washington, DC, and Brussels.

If you have any questions, please contact John Alexander at +1 202 683 2608 or [email protected].

Venues

Please note that this event will be held via video link between three separate venues. Responding to this invitation will sign you up to attend the event in Washington, DC.

Washington, DC: The German Marshall Fund of the United States, 1744 R Street NW

Kyiv: Ukraine Crisis Media Center, 2 Khreshchatyk Street

Brussels: The German Marshall Fund of the United States, Rue de la Loi 155 Wetstraat