Volodymyr Zelensky

Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy[a] (Ukrainian: Володимир Олександрович Зеленський, pronounced [woloˈdɪmɪr olekˈsɑndrowɪtʃ zeˈlɛnʲsʲkɪj]; born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian actor, comedian and politician who is the 6th and current president of Ukraine since 20 May 2019.

Prior to his acting career, Zelensky obtained a degree in law from Kyiv National Economic University. Nonetheless, Zelensky pursued comedy and created a production company, Kvartal 95, which produces films, cartoons and TV comedy shows, including Servant of the People, in which Zelensky played the role of President of Ukraine. The series aired from 2015 to 2019 and was immensely popular.

A political party bearing the same name as the television show was created in March 2018 by employees of Kvartal 95. Zelensky announced his candidacy for the 2019 Ukrainian presidential election on the evening of 31 December 2018, alongside the New Year's Eve address of President Petro Poroshenko on 1+1 TV Channel. A political outsider, Zelensky had already become one of the frontrunners in opinion polls for the election. Zelensky won the election with 73.2% of the vote in the second round, defeating Poroshenko.

Identifying as a populist, Zelensky’s achievements include dissolving parliament and winning a legislative election landslide, managing the pandemic and subsequent economic recession, and tackling corruption in Ukraine. Despite promising to end the Russo-Ukrainian War, Zelensky has been unable to do so. In recent years, critics claim that Zelensky’s government has taken an authoritarian turn.

On 26 November 2021, Zelensky announced that a group of Ukrainians and Russians was planning a coup against him at the beginning of December. However, his opponents argue that the president misled the public to rally popular support against Ukrainian businessman Rinat

.