An estimated 2-3 thousand people rallied on the evening of April 22 in front of the presidential administration in Kyiv to express their support for President Petro Poroshenko, who lost the April 21 presidential runoff election.
Poroshenko received 24.46 percent of the vote and lost to comedic actor Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who received 73.22 percent.
On April 21, immediately after the exit poll results were announced, Poroshenko voters started a flashmob on Facebook, adding “Thank you” stickers in his campaign color and font to their profile pictures.
At the rally on April 22, Poroshenko said that it meant a lot for him.
“I read so many positive things about myself on Facebook last night that I had not read in a very long time,” he said.
People chanted “We thank you” and “You’re the best.”
In an emotional speech, Poroshenko said he was happy and proud of the rally, and that Ukrainians had to protect the accomplishments of his time in office: the Ukrainian language, the army, the independent Ukrainian church, decentralization, and new Ukrainian education law.
Poroshenko repeated what he said in his speech at his campaign headquarters the night before: He is leaving office, but not politics. He hinted that he might run for president again.
“Our victories are ahead of us. Together, we are going to win the parliamentary election. Together, we will return to Bankova” — the street where the presidential administration is located — “after the next presidential election. We won’t make mistakes,” Poroshenko said.
The crowd began chanting “In a year” — perhaps suggesting that Zelenskiy would not last long in office.
Poroshenko replied: “As god wills.”
When the crowd continued to chant “In a year, in a year,” Poroshenko laughed and said, “Okay, a year it is.”
