Who will represent Ukraine at Eurovision 2026: National Selection final results
LELÉKA will represent Ukraine at Eurovision 2026 (photo: instagram.com/leleka_music)
The winner of Ukraine's National Selection for Eurovision 2026 has been announced. LELÉKA will represent the country in Vienna this May, once again showcasing the power of Ukrainian music on the international stage, according to Suspilne Culture.
How Ukraine's Eurovision 2026 National Selection winner performed
LELÉKA moved the audience with a heartfelt, deeply emotional performance at the national final. The group performed their song Ridnym, which became one of the most poignant entries in the competition.
Ridnym tells the story of an inner journey, beginning with acceptance of change and the courage to confront personal fears. This narrative formed the backbone of LELÉKA's stage presentation.
The performance was restrained and almost meditative in style—eschewing flashy special effects while delivering a powerful emotional impact.
The atmosphere was gradually building, allowing the audience to live each lyric alongside the performers.
With heartfelt delivery, raw emotion, and meaningful storytelling, LELÉKA left the audience visibly moved.
Their performance sparked widespread discussion and became one of the most talked-about moments of the National Selection finale.
Judges and audience votes
This year's finalists were judged by a panel of music experts, including singer, songwriter, and Eurovision 2013 participant Zlata Ognevich, composer and performer Yevhen Filatov, TAVR Media CEO Vitaly Drozdov, and director and choreographer Kostiantyn Tomilchenko.
Judges' top 10:
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THE ELLIENS
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MOLODI
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ShchukaRyba
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VALERIYA FORCE
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KHAYAT
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MONOKATE
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MR. VEL
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JERRY HEIL
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LAUD
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LELÉKA
An online vote was also held in the Diia app, where viewers awarded points as follows:
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ShchukaRyba
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VALERIYA FORCE
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MONOKATE
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MOLODI
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THE ELLIENS
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MR. VEL
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KHAYAT
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JERRY HEIL
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LAUD
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LELÉKA
As a result, LELÉKA emerged as the overall winner.
Ahead of the National Selection, bookmakers had named Jerry Heil as the favorite to win. LELÉKA was predicted to finish second, with Monokate rounding out the top three.
About Eurovision 2026 National Selection
This year's Ukrainian national selection received 451 applications from 392 artists, including solo performers and bands.
The finalists who competed for the Eurovision spot were:
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Jerry Heil – Catharticus (Prayer)
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KHAYAT – Hertz
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LAUD – Lightkeeper
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LELÉKA – Ridnym
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Molodi – Legends
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Monokate – TUT
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Mr. Vel – Do Or Done
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The Elliens – Crawling Whispers
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Valeriya Force – Open Our Hearts
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ShchukaRyba – Moia Zemlia
Eurovision 2026 preview
The 70th Eurovision Song Contest will be hosted in Vienna, Austria, following the victory of JJ (Johannes Pich) with the song Wasted Love at last year's contest in Basel.
This marks Austria's third time hosting, with the Wiener Stadthalle selected as the main arena—the same venue that hosted the 2015 contest.
The event runs in May: the first semi-final on May 12, the second on May 14, and the grand final on Saturday, May 16.
About 35 countries are expected to participate. The show will be hosted by model Victoria Swarovski and actor Michael Ostrowski.
By tradition, the grand final automatically includes Austria as the host and the Big Five—France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
The climax of the contest will be the grand final on May 16, where the semifinal winners will be joined automatically by the host country and the Big Five representatives: Austria, the UK, France, Italy, and Germany.
