Zelenskyy decides on new head of presidential office
Photo: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he has chosen a candidate for the new head of the Presidential Office while answering journalists' questions.
"I have made my decision. The information will be released a little later. As for the heads of the regional military administrations, changes will take place at the beginning of the year, right at the start of the year,” Zelenskyy said.
List of candidates
The Presidential Office currently remains without a head. According to RBC-Ukraine sources, this is due to the search for a new working format for the office, which will largely depend on the choice of the future head.
Among the most likely candidates, RBC-Ukraine reports, are Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal, First Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, Head of the Defense Intelligence Kyrylo Budanov, and Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Pavlo Palisa. Sources note that the first three were considered from the start, while Palisa has earned a positive reputation through his work.
Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko was also mentioned in the media, but sources consider her appointment unlikely due to her recent arrival in office and the reluctance to change the head of government again.
Yermak's resignation
On November 28, 2025, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) conducted searches at the office of then-head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak. According to RBC-Ukraine sources, the investigative actions were linked to Operation Midas, aimed at exposing large-scale corruption in the energy sector, which NABU announced in November 2025.
After the searches on the same day, Yermak wrote a letter of resignation, which Zelensky signed. He later told journalists that appointing a new head of the Presidential Office was not currently a priority for the authorities.
On the night of November 29, The New York Post reported that Yermak had decided to go to the front. Later, after his dismissal, Andriy Yermak came to the Presidential Office to meet with the President of Ukraine.
According to Zelenskyy, staffing issues, including filling the vacancies of the ministers of energy and justice, require caution so as not to disrupt the work of the Cabinet of Ministers. Therefore, the selection of the new head of the Presidential Office is currently postponed, with the priority remaining on ending the war and ensuring the country’s security.
