Anna-Lena Lauren: Zelenskyj get it harder in the second round

Newcomer to the establishment. Worthiness against corruption. Young against the old.

Volodymyr Zelenskyjs strategy seems to have worked. According to the initial exit polls, he got the whole 30.4% of the votes in the first round. President Petro Porosjenko was 17,8 and Yulia Tymoshenko 14.2 per cent. This is the exit polls and the numbers will change during the evening. But Zelenskyjs head start is gigantic. It is very likely that he goes to the second round of the presidential elections on 21 april.

That means in so case to Zelenskyj took home the first round of the Ukrainian presidential elections, but have not participated in a single election debate.

it becomes more difficult. To have Zelenskyj president Petro Porosjenko – yet a few weeks ago was calculated and a low third behind vänsterpopulisten Yulia Tymoshenko.

During the last weeks of the step Porosjenkos figures consistently. He has a well organized campaign, virtually unlimited financial resources and last but not least, the administrative resource. It means that Porosjenko in the capacity of the sitting president have the state apparatus behind them.

Ukraine is a democracy with free elections. But Ukraine is still a postsovjetisk democracy, which means that government employees usually are voting on the incumbent rulers.

Porosjenko has made itself deeply unpopular, particularly because of the extensive corruption. That Porosjenko has failed on this point is above all that he himself is a part of the old elites. It does not Zelenskyj, which gives him a great advantage.

But in the second round, the stakes are considerably higher. Porosjenko has two decades of experience of Ukrainian politics and will resort to all possible tools to crush their inexperienced opponents.

Politically, has Porosjenko a much clearer profile than Zelenskyj. His election campaign has, under the slogan ”the Army, the language, the faith” torgfört conservative values and Ukrainian patriotism. It has given him more votes on the högerflanken. In particular, is Porosjenko a candidate who many medelklassväljare vote not because they like him, but to with Porosjenko do they know what they are getting. Corruption persists, but Porosjenko is a guarantee that the EU remains Ukraine's allies.

winning the first round, thanks in particular to who he is. Not because of what he wants. There is still no one who knows.

He is for the EU and Nato, but want to submit to all decisions of a referendum, and constantly reiterate that ”the people” to decide. Basically, it is about valfläsk - Zelenskyj know how sick and tired the ukrainians are on their politicians, and have therefore chosen to portray himself as a kind of people's messengers. He simply has to realize the will of the people without having any own opinion about the matter.

So the work there is no democracy. But Ukraine is still a young democracy, which in almost three decades has been slowed by his old, post-soviet elite. For many ukrainians is the main thing change.

If Zelenskyj will cope against Porosjenko in the second round should he talk about what he really wants. It is likely, however, is that he hopes that the current strategy is to wear all the way.

Which is not an impossibility.