President Zelenskyy is now the 6th president of Ukraine. He was born in Central Ukraine and began his career as an actor and comedian.  He has won over his country by showing support for the war and against Russia. He has shown his courage and persistence against Putin and has proven that he is the man for the job.

Zelenskyy was elected in 2019 after winning support from many of the people in Ukraine for his anti-corruption platform for Ukraine. Before running for presidency, he graduated from Kyiv National Economic University in 2000 with a law degree. However his career took a different path, he was very active in theater and joined a “performance group” where they would regularly appear on the televised finals of KVN. KVN was basically a competition for improv comedy and this was broadcasted all throughout Ukraine. He served as an artistic director of Studio Kvartal 95 until 2011 where he was named general producer of the Ukrainian TV channel Inter TV. Zelenskyy also appeared in many feature films throughout his career and finally decided to change paths in 2014. 

After Viktor Yanukovych, the previous president of Ukraine, was overthrown a billionaire stepped up. His name was Petro Poroshenko.  Due to the insurgency backed by the Russians that is located  in the east and also the massive corruption in the government, Poroshenko couldn’t even try to present modest reforms. As Poroshenko’s approval rating was reaching single digits a new election was coming. Many people thought that it would be a repeat of the 2014 election. They were wrong. Zelenskyy ran for presidency against three other candidates. According to Britannica “In March 2019 Zelenskyy had more than 30% of presidential votes in the first round of the presidential election, and Poroshenko finished second with 16%.” 

The two candidates had a debate. Thousands of people showed up to hear what these new candidates had to say. Poroshenko attempted to portray Zelenskyy as a political novice and couldn’t stand up to Vladimir Putin. These jabs at Zelenskyy were not very convincing to the Ukrainian citizens. Zelenskyy won the election on April 21st 2019 with 73% of the votes.

So far, even with the Ukrainian Invasion in full swing, President Zelenskyy has stood tall and hasn’t backed down from the invasion by Putin. He still stands with the people and is commanding his troops and fighting back against the Russian forces. He has worked with other countries to secure equipment and resources to help his military and citizens fight against Russia which has the 2nd most powerful military in the world according to CNBC.com . The country is in full support of his actions, a recent poll shows his approval rating at 91%. When the United States offered to evacuate the president, Zelenskyy responded with, “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride.” according to the Washington Post.  Zelenskyy has won over the people of Ukraine and many people across the world. He shows determination to win the war and prove to the world that no matter what they will not back down. He also continues to show his bravery against the very powerful Russian Federation.