In September, 64% of respondents reacted negatively to the idea of holding national elections in Ukraine before the end of the war, 15% - positively and 21% - were undecided. This is are the results of a survey conducted by the sociological service of the Razumkov Center from September 21 to 27, 2023 as part of the Program for Promoting Social Activism “Get Out!”

Some 36% of respondents justify their negative attitude towards holding elections due to the fact that there is no money in the country, 32% - due to the fact that Ukrainian legislation does not allow holding elections during martial law, 31% of respondents believe that It will be difficult to ensure the safety of voting participants.

Also, 29% of respondents indicate that during martial law it is impossible to comply with the standards of democratic elections due to the temporary restriction of political rights and freedoms of citizens, and 26% believe that it is impossible to organize elections in temporarily occupied territories. In addition, 24% of respondents responded that it would be problematic to organize voting for Ukrainian refugees who are abroad, and 22.5% - for military personnel located in places of hostilities.

Also, for 14% of respondents, the reason for a negative attitude towards the elections is the case if online voting is allowed, since enemy intelligence services can interfere in this process, 13% believe that there is a danger of increasing internal political conflicts, and 11% ˗ that a possible temporary lifting of martial law to allow elections will negatively affect the security of the country. Some 9% believe that members of election commissions, observers and candidates for elected positions may be mobilized.

Of those who support the idea of holding elections, 6% believe that this is necessary to support democracy in the country, 5% - to demonstrate that Ukraine is a democratic state, 5% of respondents each believe that it is necessary to change or renew the government, 5% also believe that holding elections will promote discussion in society about existing problems in the country and ways to solve them.

In the event of elections, 15% of respondents answered that they would vote for existing political parties and 24% for newly created political forces. Some 31% answered that it would not matter to them whether it was a newly created party or one that existed before.

The survey was conducted using the face-to-face method in 22 regions of Ukraine, as well as in Kiev, Zaporozhia, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, Kherson regions - only in those territories controlled by the government of Ukraine. Some 2,016 respondents aged 18 years and over were surveyed. The theoretical sampling error does not exceed 2.3%. Additional systematic sampling deviations may be due to the consequences of Russian aggression, in particular, the forced evacuation of citizens.