President of Ukraine

The president of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Президент України, romanized: Prezydent Ukrainy, pronounced [prezɪˈdɛnt ʊkrɐˈjinɪ]) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. The president is directly elected by the citizens of Ukraine for a five-year term of office (whether the presidential election is early or scheduled), limited to two terms consecutively.^[3]

The president's official residence is the Mariinskyi Palace, located in the Pechersk district of the capital Kyiv. Other official residences include the House with Chimaeras and the House of the Weeping Widow, which are used for official visits by foreign representatives. The Office of the President of Ukraine, unofficially known as "Bankova" in reference to the street it is located on, serves as the presidential office, advising the president in the domestic, foreign and legal matters.

Since the office's establishment on 5 December 1991, there have been six presidents of Ukraine. Leonid Kravchuk was the inaugural president, serving three years from 1991 until his resignation in 1994. Leonid Kuchma was the only president to have served two consecutive terms in office. Viktor Yushchenko, Petro Poroshenko, and Viktor Yanukovych served one term, with the latter being replaced by acting president Oleksandr Turchynov, who then also served as Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament, on 21 February 2014.^[4] Oleksandr Turchynov was the only acting president in Ukraine's modern history. The powers of an acting president are severely limited. On 18 June 2015, Yanukovych was officially deprived of the title of president of Ukraine.^[5] The Government of Ukraine utilizes a semi-presidential system in which the roles of the head of state and head of government are separate, thus the president of Ukraine is not the nation's head of government.^[6] The prime minister serves as the head of government,^[7] a role currently filled by Yulia Svyrydenko, who took office on 17 July 2025. Ukraine is somewhat unusual in that while many countries use a similar system typically the role of one leader is relegated to being ceremonial, in Ukraine however both the prime minister and the president have great power and responsibility assigned to their roles. Because the president of Ukraine must approve the appointment of the prime minister, the post of president is generally thought of as the more powerful role.^[8]

The current president is Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who took the oath of office on 20 May 2019. Due to martial law, elections in the country have been suspended.^[9]