# Volodymyr Zelenskyy


By [Stella](https://paragraph.com/@stella-3) · 2024-01-17

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**Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy**[\[a\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-2) (also romanized as **Zelensky** or **Zelenskiy**;[\[b\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-5) born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician who has been serving as the sixth [president of Ukraine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_Ukraine) since 2019. He was formerly a comedian and actor.

Born to a [Ukrainian Jewish](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Ukraine) family, Zelenskyy grew up as a native [Russian](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_language_in_Ukraine) speaker in [Kryvyi Rih](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kryvyi_Rih), a major city of [Dnipropetrovsk Oblast](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dnipropetrovsk_Oblast) in central Ukraine. Prior to his acting career, he obtained a degree in law from the [Kyiv National Economic University](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyiv_National_Economic_University). He then pursued a career in comedy and created the production company [Kvartal 95](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kvartal_95), which produced films, cartoons, and TV shows including the TV series [_Servant of the People_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servant_of_the_People_\(2015_TV_series\)), in which Zelenskyy played a fictional Ukrainian president. The series aired from 2015 to 2019 and was immensely popular. [A political party](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servant_of_the_People) with the same name as the TV show was created in March 2018 by employees of Kvartal 95.

Zelenskyy announced his candidacy in the [2019 presidential election](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Ukrainian_presidential_election) on the evening of 31 December 2018, alongside the New Year's Eve address of then-president [Petro Poroshenko](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petro_Poroshenko) on the TV channel [1+1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1%2B1_\(TV_channel\)). A political outsider, he had already become one of the frontrunners in [opinion polls for the election](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_2019_Ukrainian_presidential_election). He won the election with 73.23 percent of the vote in the second round, defeating Poroshenko. He has positioned himself as an [anti-establishment](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-establishment) and [anti-corruption](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-corruption) figure. As president, Zelenskyy has been a proponent of [e-government](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-government) and of unity between the [Ukrainian](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_language)\- and Russian-speaking parts of [the country's population](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Ukraine).[\[4\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-Hosa_2019-6): 11–13  His communication style makes extensive use of [social media](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_media_use_in_politics), particularly [Instagram](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instagram).[\[4\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-Hosa_2019-6): 7–10  His party won a landslide victory in [the snap legislative election](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Ukrainian_parliamentary_election) held shortly after his inauguration as president. During the first two years of his administration, Zelenskyy oversaw the lifting of legal immunity for members of parliament (the [Verkhovna Rada](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verkhovna_Rada)),[\[5\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-7) [the country's response to the COVID-19 pandemic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic_in_Ukraine) and [subsequent economic recession](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_recession), and some limited progress in tackling [corruption in Ukraine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_Ukraine).[\[6\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-8)[\[7\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-Wilson_2021-9)[\[8\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-ft_profile-10)

During his presidential campaign, Zelenskyy promised to end [Ukraine's protracted conflict with Russia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russo-Ukrainian_War), and he has attempted to engage in dialogue with Russian president [Vladimir Putin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Putin).[\[9\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-Chatham_Lutsevych-11) His administration faced [an escalation of tensions with Russia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021%E2%80%932022_Russo-Ukrainian_crisis) in 2021, culminating in the launch of [an ongoing full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_invasion_of_Ukraine). Zelenskyy's strategy during the Russian military buildup was to calm the Ukrainian populace and assure the international community that Ukraine was not seeking to retaliate.[\[10\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-12) He initially distanced himself from warnings of an imminent war, while also calling for security guarantees and military support from [NATO](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO) to "withstand" the threat.[\[11\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-Fr24_Seibt-13) After the start of the invasion, Zelenskyy declared [martial law across Ukraine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martial_law_in_Ukraine) and a general mobilisation of the armed forces. His leadership during the crisis has won him widespread international praise, and he has been described as a symbol of the Ukrainian resistance.[\[12\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-14)[\[13\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-15) Zelenskyy was named the [_Time_ Person of the Year](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_Person_of_the_Year) for 2022.[\[14\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-16)[\[15\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-17)[\[16\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-18)[\[17\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy#cite_note-19)

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