President Donald Trump has urged Ukraine to hold elections, saying the country has been under martial law for too long without a democratic process. Speaking at a press conference at Mar-a-Lago, Trump emphasized the need for Ukraine to reassess its leadership as part of potential peace talks with Russia.

“We have a situation where we haven’t had elections in Ukraine, where we have martial law, essentially martial law in Ukraine,” Trump said that Ukraine’s leadership should be determined through elections before discussions about the future of the country move forward.

Uh oh… 👀

President Trump believes Ukraine should hold a New Presidential Election Before Signing a Peace Deal with Russia

• The last time Ukraine held a presidential election was on March 31, 2019, with a runoff on April 21, 2019.

• Ukraine is currently under martial law.… pic.twitter.com/HolVQ02jDq

— Bluegrasspatriot (@kylawndog) February 19, 2025

The remarks followed Trump’s delegation meeting with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia, where discussions about ending the war took place. Notably, Ukraine was not included in these talks, a decision that President Volodymyr Zelensky later criticized.

Why is scared of an election then?
Why is Zelensky banning any other political parties?

Definitely siding with Trump on this.

US has 300,000+ Ukraine refugees that have to go back soon.

— Sophie Barclay (@graphictx) February 19, 2025

Trump also took aim at Zelensky, claiming that his approval rating had fallen to 4%. However, polling data shows the Ukrainian president maintaining support above 50%. Trump questioned why elections had not taken place, arguing that the people of Ukraine should have the opportunity to decide their leadership.

WTF cares??

Trump is trying to make peace and Zilinsky is an unelected dictator.

When Ukraine holds an actual election and allows the people of Ukraine to decide what they want to do in their country, then we’ll have a serious conversation.

— Mountain Mama (@MountainMama400) February 19, 2025

He further raised concerns about US financial aid sent to Ukraine, suggesting that there has been little transparency in how the funds have been spent. “We give hundreds of billions of dollars. I don’t see any accounting,” Trump said. He also referenced a statement from Zelensky in which the Ukrainian president reportedly admitted uncertainty about the whereabouts of some aid money.

How come Ukraine hasn’t had an election in over 8 years??

Because Zelenskyy will not allow them to have an election!

Sounds like democracy to me!

His theory is he’s at war! So no time for elections!

I guess if we’re at war, Trump stays President till it’s over? 😂

— Jason Taylor (@jasontoddtaylor) February 19, 2025

Zelensky has previously defended the decision to delay elections, arguing that holding a vote during wartime would weaken the country’s focus on defense. Ukraine’s last scheduled presidential election in April 2024 was postponed due to ongoing conflict with Russia.