Ukraine’s 2014 Elections

Abstract

In 2014 Ukraine conducted two national elections against a backdrop of political upheaval and a separatist conflict in which national minority concerns were voiced by some parties. In the context of the election process, reports by international observers did not reflect discrimination against national minorities as voters or candidates. However, a dearth of candidates campaigning as national minorities or including national minority issues in their platforms was observed, and can be traced to peculiarities of the legal framework that disadvantage smaller and compact political forces. It was observed that candidates of various national minority backgrounds may campaign and win elections, but few declare themselves to be representing the interest of a national minority. This was true for both the proportional and simple majority races during the parliamentary elections, in which only five candidates campaigning as national minority representatives were elected to parliament. Ultimately the main issue for national minorities in Ukraine’s political process is not one of discrimination, but the realistic opportunity for robust representation and advocacy of their communities’ concerns at the national level.