Serhiy Ratushniak
Serhiy Ratushnyak | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Uzhgorod | |
| In office 2006[1]–2010[2] | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Serhiy Mykolayovych Ratushnyak 17 February 1961[1] Uzhgorod, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union |
| Political party | Independent, former party's include: Hromada, For United Ukraine, Our Ukraine, Regions of Ukraine, People's Party[1] |
Serhiy Mykolayovych Ratushnyak (Ukrainian: Сергій Миколайович Ратушняк; born February 17, 1961) is a former[2] Mayor of Uzhhorod and was a self-nominated candidate in the 2010 Ukrainian presidential election.[3] During the election Ratushnyak received 0.12% of the votes.[4]
Biography
Ratushniak was born in Uzhgorod, Ukrainian SSR.[1] He entered politics in 1994 after creating RIO, a syndicate of enterprises engaged in beverage sales, the production of cured meats and taxi service. Ratushnyak was charged in 2000 with embezzlement, but released after the charges were dropped.[5]
In August 2009, Ratushnyak was alleged to have beaten a female campaigner of fellow presidential candidate, Arseniy Yatseniuk (Front of Change)[6] A criminal case was soon opened against Ratushniak, he was accused of hooliganism, abuse of office and the violation of racial and national equality of citizens,[7] Ratushniak denies the claims.[8] Ratushniak was not previously known to be anti-Semitic.[8] Following his nomination Ratushniak told a local paper that the Jews were to blame for all his country's troubles.[8] Ratushnyak has also called Yatsenyuk "a nasty Jew mason"[5] and an "impudent little Jew" who was "successfully serving the thieves who are in power in Ukraine and is using criminal money to plough ahead towards Ukraine's presidency".[8] The mayor told the Associated Press in a telephone interview: "Is everybody obliged to love Jews and Israel? If I don't like Jews and Israel, does that make me an anti-Semite?".[8]
In late December 2009, Ratushniak called on President Viktor Yushchenko to declare war on Somalia; referring to the taking hostage of Ukrainian sailors by Somali pirates.[9] Ratushniak also believes Americans should atone for killing native Indians before meddling in Ukraine's internal affairs.[9] He also wants to tax the rich, develop nuclear arms and oblige all Ukrainians to learn another foreign language, apart from Russian.[10]
After the first round of the 2010 Ukrainian presidential election where Ratushniak gained only 0.12% of the votes he called upon his voters to support Yulia Tymoshenko against Viktor Yanukovych in the second round: "She will be accepted by the international community and European governments, while every second of those will shut the door in front of Yanukovych."[11]
During the 2010 Mayoral elections, Ratushniak ended in second place.[2]
Ratushniak tried to return to national politics in the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election by trying to win, as an independent candidate, single-member districts number 68 (first-past-the-post wins a parliament seat) located in Uzhgorod; but he became second in this district with 19.51% of the votes.[12]
In the 2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election he stood again as an independent candidate in the same single-member districts as in 2012; but this time he placed fifth with 7.71% of the votes (winner Robert Horvat of Petro Poroshenko Bloc got 21.58%).[13]
References
- ^ a b c d Template:Uk icon Ратушняк Сергій Миколайович ЗАКАРПАТТЯ online
- ^ a b c Template:Uk icon "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-11-10. Retrieved 2011-01-15.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Central Election Commission registers Uzhgorod mayor as presidential candidate, Kyiv Post (November 13, 2009)
- ^ Template:Uk icon ЦВК оприлюднила офіційні результати 1-го туру виборів, Gazeta.ua (January 25, 2010)
- ^ a b Political Pulse: Presidential field takes shape, Kyiv Post (November 11, 2009)
- ^ Mayor of Uzhhorod alleged to have beaten girl campaigner of Front of Changes, Kyiv Post (August 7, 2009)
- ^ Ratushnyak: I'm not xenophobic, but ‘It is not my fault that these Ukrainian billionaires are of Jewish origin', Kyiv Post (August 14, 2009)
- ^ a b c d e Anti-Semitic Ukraine mayor to run for president, Jerusalem Post (November 17, 2009)
- ^ a b Uzhgorod mayor: We should declare war on Somali, Kyiv Post (December 30, 2009)
- ^ Rough-edged Ratushnyak goes nowhere on national platform, Kyiv Post (January 14, 2010)
- ^ http://korrespondent.net/ukraine/politics/1037055
- ^ Template:Uk iconSingle-mandate constituency № 69, Central Election Commission of Ukraine
- ^ Template:Uk icon Candidates and winner for the seat in constituency 68 in the 2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election Archived 2014-12-24 at archive.today, RBK Ukraine