Leonid Chernovetskyi - Political Career

Political Career

Chernovetskyi is the leader of the Christian Liberal Party of Ukraine. He joined the party in 1996 and was elected to the Ukrainian Parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, representing one of Kiev's constituencies. He was reelected in 1998 and 2002. During his last term (2002–2006) he was a member of the Committee of National Budget and head of the Committee of a Control of Budget Spending. He also was a member of the Our Ukraine fraction in Parliament. In 1998-1999 Chernovestkyi was a co-chair, and in 1999-2000 the chair of the "For Beautiful Ukraine" party. From 1997 to 2001 he was a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the President of Ukraine.

2004 presidential elections

Chernovestkyi was a self-nominated candidate in the 2004 presidential election, believed to be one of the "technical candidates" whose true mission was to assist Viktor Yushchenko's struggle for the presidency by placing additional representatives in electoral commissions.

2006 parliamentary and mayor elections

According to the Kiev city election commission, Chernovetskyi garnered 32 percent of the vote to win the election for mayor of Kiev. Vitali Klitschko placed second with 24 percent and incumbent Oleksandr Omelchenko placed third with 21 percent. Opponents say Chernovetskyi won because of a dirty campaign marred by bribing impoverished elderly voters with food; Chernovetsky has denied this. Chernovetskyi was also elected to the Verkhovna Rada in the list of the Our Ukraine Bloc, but had to reject the parliamentary seat.

2008 snap Kiev local election and political unrest

Leonid Chernovetskyi won another term as Mayor of Kiev with 38% of the vote in the May 25, 2008 snap local election, called on by the Verkhovna Rada in March 2008.

2009 Klychko - Chernovetsky stand-off

On February 6, 2009, the Vitaliy Klychko Bloc stated it will apply to the Verkhovna Rada, the Cabinet of Ministers, the National Security and Defense Council, and the Kiev prosecutor's office with a request to take into consideration the unlawfulness of Kiev Mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi actions and to call early mayoral elections in the city. Earlier On December 12, 2008 Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko also hinted that new early mayoral elections should be held again in Kiev. This was based on Tymoshenko's disapprove of the handling of Chernovetskyi of the local energy crises of December 2008 when the Kyivenergo utility company began cutting the supply of hot water to about 5,000 homes in Kiev because of the Kiev municipal administration's failure to compensate the company for the difference between the tariffs charged by Kyivenerho and the actual cost of its services. Tymoshenko accuses Leonid Chernovetskyi of using money from the municipal budget to finance his election campaign (and so there were insufficient funds to pay Kyivenerho).

Chernovetskyi had become unpopular among the residents of Kiev. On March 13, 2009 a Verkhovna Rada temporary commission on the issues of investigating violations of legislation by the officials of the Kiev city state administration and the Kiev city council came to the conclusion that it was necessary to examine the mental and physical state of Chernovetskyi, however, the procedure could be performed against his will only under a court ruling.

Yanukovych presidency

Chernovetskyi announced in March 2009 he would participate in the Ukrainian presidential election, 2010. But did not do so.

A March 2010 poll indicated that a large majority of Kiev residents (more than 89%) were unhappy with his work and would like the mayor to resign without delays (80%). On November 15, 2010 President Viktor Yanukovych dismissed Leonid Chernovetskyi from the post of Head of the Kiev's State Administration and appointed Oleksandr Popov to this post. Popov is seen as Chernovetsky's replacement since he was not elected but appointed by President Viktor Yanukovich. The appointment was made possible by the Ukraine's national parliament which had amended the law on “the capital of Ukraine – hero city of Kiev” on September 7, 2010 making it possible for the President to appoint the chairman of the city administration at his discretion (before the amendments the elected Kiev mayor was automatically appointed head of the city administration). Another presidential decree relieved Chernovitsky of the office "head of the Kiev State Administration", while still preserving the post of Kiev mayor.

Popov stated early 2011 "we've definitely limited the activity of the city council and the mayor to some extent". In November 2010 Prime Minister Mykola Azarov compared Chernovetsky to the Queen of England, saying he had a title but no official decision-making role. The Azarov Government then opened several investigations into the allegedly illegal sale of city land and property by Chernovetsky's top officials and then sales of those lands to friends and their companies. By then Chernovetsky was not to be seen in Kiev and rumors appeared he was in "quasi-retirement" in Switzerland, was seeking political asylum in Israel or that he had secretly tendered his resignation. In a pressconference on January 28, 2011 Prime Minister Azarov asked Popov “to find by all means” Chernovetsky "to bring him back to the work". According to UNIAN Azarov "could not suppress a laugh" when asked about Chernovetsky. Popov has stated he last met with the mayor toward the end of 2010. Chernovetsky's spokeswoman Marta Hrymska told The Associated Press on 8 February 2011 in a phone text message that the mayor resumed duties after a vacation in Georgia. Commentators suggested that by failing to fulfill his duties, Chernovetsky was trying to force President Yanukovich to stop the investigations into his close aides and that Yanukovych was reluctant to see Chernovetsky go just yet and share power with a new mayor, because his protégé Popov, was unlikely to get elected. On February 24, 2011 Chernovetskyi did attend a meeting of the Kiev City Council.

On 3 August 2011 it was reported that Chernovetskyi has secretly left Ukraine and moved to Israel. According to Agence France Press, he was discovered by a crew of Ukrainian television channel 1+1 in an apartment in Tel Aviv. In a brief statement, Chernovetskyi, who was surprised they had found him, called it "an unofficial holiday". It had been reported earlier, that he has held Israeli citizenship since 1994, having run for president and for Kiev mayor while holding dual Israeli and Ukrainian citizenships in violation of Ukrainian law, which does not allow its citizens to hold dual citizenship.

In February 2012 Chernovetskyi stated he will not run for re-election.