Verkhovna Rada has a record low number of MPs: what to expect
Kyiv • UNN
The Verkhovna Rada now has 398 people's representatives after Oles Dovgyi was stripped of his mandate. The reduction in staff is due to the ban of OPZZh and the refusal of mandates.
The Verkhovna Rada, the Ukrainian parliament, has stripped MP Oles Dovhyi of his deputy mandate. Dovhyi had previously submitted his resignation. This brings the number of currently serving MPs to 398, setting a new anti-record. UNN journalist investigated how the composition of the parliament has changed during the IX convocation, what caused the early termination of deputy mandates, and how many deputies are needed for the Verkhovna Rada to function.
How a People's Deputy Can Lose Their Mandate
According to the Constitution of Ukraine, a Member of Parliament can lose their mandate for the following reasons:
• Resignation upon their personal request;
• Entry into legal force of a guilty verdict against them;
• Being declared legally incompetent or missing by a court;
• Termination of their citizenship or their departure for permanent residence outside Ukraine;
• If, within twenty days from the occurrence of circumstances that lead to a violation of the incompatibility requirements of a deputy mandate with other activities, these circumstances are not eliminated by them;
• Failure of a People's Deputy of Ukraine, elected from a political party, to join the deputy faction of that political party, or the exit of a People's Deputy of Ukraine from such a faction;
• Their death.
It is worth clarifying that "circumstances that lead to a violation of the incompatibility requirements of a deputy mandate with other activities" refer to holding certain positions that MPs cannot hold. For example, if an MP becomes a government minister.
Currently, 52 people's deputies of the IX convocation have prematurely terminated their powers. Some of them lost their citizenship, while others resigned their mandates.
The sharp decrease in the number of deputies in the IX convocation is directly related to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation and the ban of the collaborationist party "Opposition Platform – For Life".
The "For Life" Factor
After the full-scale invasion, no one replaced the representatives of the banned "Opposition Platform – For Life". This is because the party was banned by a decision of the National Security and Defense Council, meaning that vacant seats cannot be filled by individuals who were listed on the party's electoral roll behind the collaborationist deputies.
The most well-known representatives of this group include Viktor Medvedchuk, Vadym Rabinovych, and Illya Kyva, along with about two dozen other MPs from the "Opposition Platform – For Life".
Another trend during the full-scale war has been the voluntary resignation of deputy mandates. These are predominantly fugitive MPs, representatives of the same banned "Opposition Platform – For Life", and former "Party of Regions" members.
Resignations for Positions
The majority of deputies who voluntarily resigned belong to the "Servant of the People" party – 21 individuals. The CHESNO movement explains that the party list also serves as a personnel reserve for the ruling party to further delegate politicians to the government, appoint them to regions, and other government bodies.
In total, eight elected officials from "Servant of the People" have taken up ministerial positions, two have headed the Prosecutor General's Office at various times, and three more "Servants" were appointed regional governors.
Several individuals from other factions also received positions. Notably, these include Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets ("For the Future") and former Head of the State Property Fund, now Minister of Defense, Rustem Umerov ("Golos").
Who Occupies the Vacant Seat
If a deputy who entered parliament through a party list loses their mandate, their seat is taken by a party colleague who ran on the same list but did not initially secure a seat. Therefore, in such cases, the deputy's resignation generally does not affect the total number of parliamentarians in the Verkhovna Rada. We explained above why this principle did not apply to the "Opposition Platform – For Life".
On the other hand, if a deputy was elected in a single-mandate constituency, meaning they were nominated not by a party list but by their electoral district, their seat will remain vacant until the next election.
Can the IX Convocation Verkhovna Rada Function?
Given that the issue of future elections to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine remains unresolved, the question arises: can the Ukrainian parliament function with such a small number of deputies? The answer is simple: such a Verkhovna Rada can function, as 398 is more than the required two-thirds stipulated by the Constitution.
"The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is empowered if no less than two-thirds of its constitutional composition is elected," states the Constitution.
If the number of deputies in the Verkhovna Rada continues to decrease and falls below two-thirds, a serious crisis could be triggered, as the Ukrainian parliament would be unable to perform its primary function – adopting laws.
In such a case, elections would have to be held to elect a new parliament. However, according to CHESNO movement analysis, a situation where almost no more [sic] deputies resign their mandates from the Verkhovna Rada is unlikely.
Theoretically, it is possible, but in practice, new candidates will still fill the seats of those who leave the lists. And this might even have a positive effect – "new blood" will stimulate parliamentary activity
At the same time, it is noted that the situation with single-mandate deputies is more complex, as holding by-elections in constituencies is prohibited during martial law.
