Local elections in Ukraine’s port city of Mariupol were called off yesterday, prompting the ruling party of President Petro Poroshenko and the pro-Russian Opposition Party to blame each other for alleged irregularities during the vote.
Mariupol, a city of around 500,000, lies on the coast between the Crimean peninsula, annexed by Russia from Ukraine last year, and separatist-held eastern territory, where a ceasefire between the pro-Russian rebels and Ukrainian forces has largely held since September despite several clashes.
The election spat shows the distrust that persists between Ukraine’s leadership, which has steered the country towards greater integration in Europe, and Ukraine’s pro-Russian faction which still retains significant support in the mainly Russian-speaking east of the country.
“According to my information some sort of falsification was being set up and we certainly can’t allow this,” President Petro Poroshenko said as he was casting his own vote in Kiev.
We must make sure and show the world that Ukraine is a free, democratic country and that elections are held according to the best global standards
He said the Mariupol election should be rescheduled before the end of the year.
In a separate statement, his party blamed the ballot issues in Mariupol on the Opposition Party, which includes many former supporters and allies of ousted pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych.
The Opposition Party in turn accused Mr Poroshenko’s party of running a “dirty and unprincipled campaign” and said he was responsible for the elections being cancelled in Mariupol.
The mayoral and council elections are being held across Ukraine, apart from in territories controlled by pro-Russian separatists seeking independence from Kiev and some Ukrainian-controlled towns close to the frontline. Mr Poroshenko’s ruling party is currently leading in the mayoral and council polls, but the popularity of his pro-Western government has fallen due perceived slow progress in its implementation of reform amid an economic crisis.
“This is the face of Ukraine. We must make sure and show the world that Ukraine is a free, democratic country and that we work hard so that elections are held according to the best global standards,” Mr Poroshenko said. According to a poll from mid-October, 13 per cent of voters planned to support Mr Poroshenko’s party in local elections and the next three parties – including Opposition Party – had equal support of 11 per cent.
The party of Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk was not fielding a single candidate in yesterday’s vote, after support plummeted to one per cent from over 20 per cent one year ago.