The wheels are coming off Ukrainian anti-corruption reform efforts

Olexiy Haran, a political scientist at Kyiv-Mohyla University, said Zelensky’s party managed to gain seats on the city councils in most major Ukrainian cities, but failed to gain control of any of them. He characterized the decline in Servant of the People’s support as an “expected” development.

Zelensky lieutenants tried to put some positive spin on the voting outcome. One top party figure, Oleksandr Kornienko, noted that Servant of the People had won the overall biggest share of the vote nationwide.

Haran said a “weakened” Zelensky will likely have a tougher time mobilizing support for his policy proposals. Already, infighting within Servant of the People has sapped reform momentum, forcing Zelensky to engage in coalition-building with other parties. The more parliamentary deal-making that is required, the more watered-down reforms are likely to become.

Source: Eurasianet