Volodymyr Zelenskiy and supporters celebrate victory in Ukraine’s Presidential election, April 21, 2019


UPDATED, APRIL 23:

Later on Tuesday, I spoke further with talkRADIO’s Penny Smith about Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s victory in Ukraine, talking about the significance and challenges for the country.

We also go beyond Kiev to look at what the “outsider”-as-President trend says about the state of political parties and democracy in other nations.

Listen from 17:35 in 1800-1830 Segment


On Sunday, comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy won the Ukraine Presidency, taking 73% of the vote against incumbent Petro Poroshenko.

Zelenskiy’s campaign has galvanized international attention as the latest victory by an outsider against the political elite. He was best-known for playing a teacher who unexpectedly becomes the President.

See also Comedian Leads Ukraine Presidential Election — But It’s Moscow Who May Be Laughing
No Joke: Why A Young Comedian Leads Polls in Ukraine’s Presidential Election

Significantly, the catalyst in that story is a student’s essay on corruption, the focus in the real campaign. Five years after the Maidan Square uprising that forced out Russian-backed Viktor Yanukovych over the issue, what can the newcomer do to address the long-standing problem?

And how will Zelenskiy deal with Russia’s annexation of Crimea, encouragement of separatism in eastern Ukraine, and seizure of Ukrainian ships and sailors last November?

I talk through the situation with talkRADIO’s John Nicolson.

Listen from 8:29 in 0630-0700 Segment