But voters are expecting too much from the new man
WITH DANCE music blaring, drinks flowing, and ping-pong balls flying about, Volodymyr Zelensky’s election-day headquarters in Kiev felt like a nightclub. Mr Zelensky had reason to party: as expected, the comedian-cum-candidate trounced the incumbent, Petro Poroshenko, in the presidential run-off election on April 21st. He racked up a stunning 73% of the vote against the president’s 24%.
Mr Poroshenko’s campaign was a crude appeal to patriotism. He ran under the slogan of “Army, Language, Faith”, playing up his successes at securing an independent Ukrainian Orthodox Church and visa-free travel to the European Union. He sought to paint Mr Zelensky as dangerously inexperienced and beholden to outside interests. “He is a bright candy wrapper,” Mr Poroshenko said in a debate ahead of the vote.
This malaise fuelled Mr Zelensky’s rise. Many Ukrainians expressed their choice in terms of opposition to the current regime, rather than enthusiasm for the candidate himself. “People are voting against the old authorities,” Daniil Bychenok, an 18-year-old student, said. “We don’t know what we’re voting for.” In the run-up to the vote, polls showed that 60% of those who planned to support Mr Zelensky saw it as a protest vote.
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