Number of national deputies to be 300
The Verkhovna Rada on February 4 approved a bill in one of two readings that would amend the Constitution of Ukraine and reduce the number of lawmakers in the chamber from 450 to 300. A slim majority of 236 lawmakers voted for President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s draft law that would amend two articles of the Constitution. The other change would enshrine a purely proportional electoral system and eliminate single-seat constituencies. Single-mandate districts currently make up half of the Rada’s 450 seats and have often been used as a way for oligarchs, sports stars and celebrities to get elected. The language of the legislation still could be changed before a final second reading, but in its current form the bill stipulates that citizens who’ve lived at least five years in the country and fluently speak the Ukrainian language qualify for a parliamentary seat.