Ildikó Eperjesi, the author of Neokohn, wrote an article entitled A Jewish showman could be the next president of Ukraine
It is extremely instructive now, knowing what has happened since then, to recall the situation report from only three years ago, which not only criticizes the election chances, but also depicts the comedian's personality in a plastic way.
Below is the article in its entirety:
"According to the current situation, a very loose Jewish showman will soon be the head of state of Ukraine in the person of Volodymyr Zelensky. The actor-producer collected almost twice as many votes as the reigning Petro Poroshenko in the first round of the presidential election. However, the public mood has not resolved at all in Ukraine, which is facing serious existential threats.
"The people are before everything for me. My ambitions are more important than political activity. The Ukrainian people above everything" - that's all Volodymyr Zelenskyy , when it turned out that more people voted for him than expected in the first round of the Ukrainian presidential election on March 31st, and in fact, he was essentially defeated.
To this idea, which is usually heard primarily from populists (they always invoke the people and kick the democratic rules), he was able to add so much in his sexy hoarse voice in Ukrainian (which probably brought him a lot of votes for the kitchen) that he thanked everyone very much and that there are many exit polls , but only one winner.
The showman was the winner, not only based on the exit polls, but also based on the final result. Compared to his 30 percent, incumbent President Petro Poroshenko could only muster 16 percent, but at least he beat former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who was considered the best candidate for a long time, who was thus eliminated from further competition. In the second round on April 21, Zelensky and Poroshenko will be the next Ukrainian president.
Fight against corruption
Zelenskyi's campaign team, aware of the final result, immediately put together a very trendy video. The presidential candidate changed the branded shirts and sweaters to an impeccably cut suit, and smiling mischievously, but aware of his enormous superiority, gave Poroshenko an ultimatum: stand up to him in a public debate, and moreover in the Olympic stadium in Kyiv. The president, who is fighting for re-election, accepted the challenge, for example, he submitted himself to a drug test.
On the other hand, Poroshenko will hardly comply with Zelensky's further loud demands.
The actor demands that the president make public the list of his offshore companies, then the banks where the companies keep their accounts, and even the balance sheets of the last five years.
The suddenly hyperactive candidate has other ideas that are well suited to the fight against corruption, for example: the anti-corruption office should finally be established by inviting international experts, and the investigation of economic abuses from the SZBU security service and the police should be transferred to it.
With this, Zelenskiy sensed Poroshenko's weak point: during the five years of his presidency, his results are, to put it mildly, contradictory, especially when it comes to combating corruption.
It is a big show in itself that the actor would stand up for a public debate, because he neither held a rally nor gave an interview during the campaign. According to bad language, Vaszil Holoborogyko, the history teacher-turned-president he played, campaigned for him. With this role, Zelenskiy really burst into the public consciousness more than three years ago.
In the television series Servant of the People, the main character Holoborogyko freaks out because of corruption, his outburst is recorded on video, which is posted on the Internet, and finally the teacher finds himself in the president's chair. The fearless teacher takes up the fight against the powerful oligarchs and makes Ukraine flourish for the third season, but only after the country falls apart and then reunites.
He supported the Maidan revolution
The still relatively young (41-year-old) showman, who is said to be extremely funny, nice and cool even in real life, goes without saying that he has an excellent understanding of the media, the Internet, and the world of videos. His campaign also took place almost exclusively on social media. Of course, this and its appearance had a big impact on the young people, especially they voted for it. (In the big cities of western Ukraine, but also in the east, there are many young people with a European orientation.)
By the way, the actor-producer is originally from Kryvyi Rih, that is, from the south-eastern part of Ukraine, where Russian is used more than the Ukrainian language (this does not make them of Russian nationality, because there the nation does not necessarily "live in its language").
His father is a university professor of Jewish origin, but according to the signs, his roots are not important to him. When Zelensky, for example, turned 16, he had the opportunity to study in Israel on a scholarship, but his father reportedly stated that "only through his dead body."
Zelensky studied law after high school (where he played sports, played guitar, danced and excelled), but never practiced law, preferring acting. A team slowly formed around him, then the production office Kvartal 95 Studio, with which they took part in humorous television contests, then with their programs and concerts they hacked the countries of the former Soviet Union (where many still speak Russian).
He lived in Moscow for a while. In 2003, his team was invited by the Ukrainian television channel 1+1, which is owned by the Jewish oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky
Zelenskyi hosted a cooking show and then launched a political cabaret that overtook all other humor programs in Ukrainian media. He appeared in several films, and then came the aforementioned Servant of the People, which touched sensitive chords in the souls of Ukrainians.
In 2013-14, he supported the Euromajdan protesters and performed in front of them. He stood by the Ukrainian army when the war against Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine began. He also performed in front of the soldiers and financially supported the volunteer battalions.
In his performances, he impersonated Russian politicians, which is why the Russian channels took him off the show. Nevertheless, he complained that Russian artists were not allowed to perform in Ukraine because of the conflict.
Who is behind it?
The showman with no political experience whatsoever
last year, on New Year's Eve, he announced on 1+1 that he was running in the presidential election, just when Poroshenko would have given his New Year's speech on other channels. 1+1 aired Zelenskyi's programs until the elections, and the third season of Servant of the People has just started.
It was on this channel that rumors began to spread that Zelensky could be the new (Ukrainian) Ronald Reagan (as a reminder: the late American president started his career as an actor).
Many people believe that Kolomyskiy, who is known to be Poroshenko's fiercest opponent, is actually the one behind the scenes.
The president, who is also known for his chocolate factories, is also one of the richest people in Ukraine, and even increased his fortune during his presidency.
Born in Dnepropetrovsk (the city and its surroundings, now known as Dnipro, have already given Ukraine many leading politicians and leaders), Ihor Kolomoiskyi is one of the most influential people in Ukraine, perhaps the foremost leader of Ukrainian Jewry, and the former owner of PrivatBank, which was embroiled in serious financial abuses.
The financial institution, which was on the brink of bankruptcy, was nationalized a few years ago under the command of Poroshenko, thus saving the customers. By the way, Kolomoisky also supported the Ukrainian army's operations in eastern Ukraine, although it is not known whether it was mainly because he has serious businesses in the south-eastern part of the country threatened by the Russians.
Good news for Transcarpathian Hungarians (as it turned out, not at all - ed.)
As the elections approached, more and more people took it for granted that Zelensky is pro-Russian, which, of course, Poroshenko's staff is primarily trying to "make aware" the Ukrainians (this is mainly based on the fact that the actor has business ties to Russia, he allegedly has a contract with the Russian Ministry of Culture).
Of course, Zelensky denies that Kolomoisky or any other oligarch has it in his pocket. And after the first round, one of his advisors tried to reassure the public and the Western partners by saying
if the showman is elected president, his "foreign policy will be one hundred percent pro-European".
Not much can be known about the other elements of Zelenskiy's program, except that he wants: not to criminalize those who do not speak Ukrainian (this is good news for the Transcarpathian Hungarians), and he wants to listen to the voice of the people so seriously that he plans to hold referendums on several issues (for example on NATO and EU membership) and would negotiate personally with Putin.
Here, he will be able to use his excellent acting skills, although it does not bode well that, according to leaked news, he negotiated with several diplomats behind closed doors during the campaign and performed disastrously, he simply cannot improvise, he can only recite pre-written texts.
Others, especially those who voted for him, say: Poroshenko's policy was divisive, because it primarily favored the more nationalist residents of Western Ukraine, while Zelensky can be a unifying politician.
A strong head of state would be needed
It is certain that the fact that the presidential election was held in Ukraine despite the war was a great achievement, and there was plenty of choice. In the end, nearly forty candidates appeared on the list (of course, some of them were so-called technical candidates, who were nominated by the more likely candidates to deceive the voters, to "hijack" the votes).
Here it was absolutely impossible to know who would be the runner-up (in other post-Soviet states, for example Russia, it is rare to lose a bet on who will be "elected" in the end).
Whatever the outcome of the second round on April 21, the situation carries serious risks. If Poroshenko wins (who can't show really convincing results not only in the fight against corruption, but also against poverty and emigration), it will be hard for him to believe that he didn't cheat, so people can take to the streets. (By the way, international observers found the first round basically okay, although hundreds of complaints were received.)
If, on the other hand, Zelenskiy wins, a completely inexperienced "politician" will be at the head of the country, whose program and staff are not clear for now, and who clearly does not understand either the economy or foreign policy.
Because of Russian aggression, it would be extremely important that the next Ukrainian president be acceptable to the Western allies, or at least taken seriously, and that a strong head of state would be needed.
For this, it would be important for the turnout to be high in the second round and for one of the candidates to win by a significant margin. And in the autumn there will be parliamentary elections in Ukraine, the question is how the party of the elected president will fare there, whether there will be a big conflict between the head of state and the Verkhovna Rada.
By the way, Zelensky himself admitted that Ukrainians actually want to elect Holoborogyko as president. If this is the case, it can be said that if the showman becomes the next head of state, there will be great disappointment due to the presidential election media hack, which at first glance seems brash, but is actually well thought out, and it will not benefit Ukraine or the Jewish people. "
Featured image: YouTube
