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Ukraine’s first capital, Kharkov, is shaken by rumors of a serious illness of permanent mayor Gennady Kernes, who has been in charge of the city for 10 years. The last time he appeared in public was on August 23, then his car was noticed in hospital number 17, which is the main city for coronavirus.
On Monday, there were even rumors in Kharkov that Kernes was in a coma, which, however, was officially denied.
But speaking of a severe form of the disease and the fact that because of it the mayor cannot go to the polls continues to circulate in the city. In this context, they are already discussing who can pass Kernes’ team instead of him if his health does not allow it.
“Strana” analyzes what is happening in Kharkov.
Pre-election lineup
For the first time, Gennady Kernes took office as mayor of Kharkiv in 2010, having received 30% of the votes, defeating current Interior Minister Arsen Avakov in elections.
Five years later, he won the mayoral elections with 65.8% of the votes.
And all these years it maintained a consistently high rating in the city. The latest opinion poll, which was conducted by the Rating group in July this year, showed that Kernes has the highest support from the townspeople of all local politicians. 60% of those surveyed said they had a positive attitude towards Kernes, 26% said it was neutral and only 13% spoke negatively.
With such indicators, it was he who was considered the favorite of the autumn local elections.
For example, the current head of the Kharkov regional administration, Oleksiy Kucher, who was nominated for the mayoral elections by the pro-presidential Servant of the People party, has a positive attitude of only 6% of the population. Overall, 54% don’t know who they are.
So far, only People’s Congressman Alexander Feldman, whose nomination was supported by the Platform Opposition – For Life! Faction, has a real chance of competing for the second round alongside Kernes.
First, Feldman has the support of two Kharkov districts: Novobavarsky and Kholodnogorsky, where he has been repeatedly elected to the Verkhovna Rada since 2002. Second, he has strong support from Barabashovo businessmen who are in conflict with the city authorities. In general, according to the “Rating” group, 36% have a positive attitude towards him, 37% – neutral, 15% – negative.
There is also a certain level of support from the former governor of the Kharkov region, Svetlichnaya, who goes to the polls with her party.
Coma rumors
Kernes last appeared in public on City Day, August 23, and then disappeared from the media’s field of vision. In early September, local publications reported that Kernes had a coronavirus. But his press service denied this information.
However, journalists from the Kharkiv publications noted the transport in which the mayor moves, near the 17 hospital of the city, which is determined as a support for the treatment of patients with coronavirus.
A new wave of rumors began on September 14, after the Kharkiv City Council officially confirmed that Kernes was on sick leave. After this, information passed through the media that the mayor was even in a coma.
In a conversation with “Strana” this information was denied by the head of the press service of the Kharkiv city council, Yuriy Sidorenko.
“There is no coma. All the rumors that he is in a coma and unconscious are spreading close telegram channels to political opponents. There are some health problems that are absolutely solvable. I have not been with him, but the medical staff who recently came from him He came out, they say he is a “contact”. They assure that he is conscious, “- said Yuri Sidorenko.
Businessman Pavel Fuks, known for his friendly ties with Kharkiv Mayor Gennady Kernes, also denies that Kharkiv Mayor is in a coma.
“This is a lie. I spoke to him 30 minutes ago. Gennady Adolfovich is really sick, but at the same time he is cheerful and full of energy,” Fuchs wrote on his Telegram channel Monday night.
The interlocutor of “Strana”, surrounded by the mayor of Kharkiv, said that Kernes was not in a coma, but his condition was really serious.
Deputy Mayor is expected to be the successor
The issue of the mayor’s illness led to rumors in Kharkov that he himself would not go to the polls, but would instead nominate a successor, a member of his team, whom he completely trusts.
For many years, this is considered the “right hand” of Kernes in Kharkov Igor Terekhov.
In the mid-2000s, he was Vice Chairman of the Kharkiv Regional State Administration, Arsen Avakov, and then went on to Mayor Gennady Kernes’ team, where he still works. According to the official biography of the deputy mayor, he is not married, he has three children. Before joining politics, he worked at the Industrial Company Ukrkonditsioner, one of whose founders is his mother, Victoria Terekhova. In the mid-2000s, Terekhov, along with Avakov’s entourage, was co-owner of the largest network of tobacco kiosks in Kharkiv. Gennady Kernes.
At the same time, according to the latest statements by the deputy mayor, he lives on a single salary: about 100 thousand hryvnia per month, he has two small apartments jointly owned with his mother and a 2013 Mercedes-Benz GL 350.
Also, Terekhov’s statement states that he has securities: AMC Finex-Capital LLC. This company is part of the Finex-Ukraine group of financier Igor Kogut. And Terekhov became the owner of the AMC securities at the end of 2017. Interesting that Gennady Kernes has been declaring dividends received from this company for several consecutive years, in total, more than 20 million UAH in dividends. Terekhov also received 10.5 million UAH in dividends since 2017.
At the same time, the structures of “Finex-Capital” have repeatedly received contracts for the repair of roads and various construction works in Kharkov at the expense of the city budget.
Therefore, Terekhov is in fact one of the closest people to the incumbent mayor, and thus his rumor has already begun to “promote” Kernes’s successors.
But the interlocutors of “Strana” surrounded by the mayor of Kharkov say that he is not yet a successor.
“We all hope that Gennady Adolfovich recovers and participates in the elections. Therefore, scenarios with a successor are not being worked out. And the rumors about it are spread by our opponents,” said the source in the inner circle of the mayor.
Political scientist Vadim Karasev says the same.
Does Kernes need to campaign? No. The car is charged and runs on autopilot even when the mayor is on sick leave. Kernes is Kernes. You don’t even need to do anything, everyone knows about it anyway. So it is too early to speak of a successor. Kernes is one of those people. who will fight to the end, “Karasev said.
