Ivan Serhiiovych Fedorov (; born 29 August 1988) is a Ukrainian politician who was appointed Governor of Zaporizhzhia Oblast in February 2024. He was previously the first deputy head of the

Zaporizhzhia Oblast Council The Zaporizhzhia Oblast Council () is the regional oblast council (parliament) of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast (province) located in eastern Ukraine. Council members are elected for five year terms. In order to gain representation in the council, a p ...

, mayor of

Melitopol Melitopol is a city and municipality in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, southeastern Ukraine. It is situated on the Molochna River, which flows through the eastern edge of the city into the Molochnyi Lyman estuary. Melitopol is the second-largest city ...

and a member of the Melitopol City Council.

Career

Fedorov was elected to 6th convocation of the Melitopol city council. In 2015, he was elected first deputy head of the 7th convocation of the

. In 2020, he succeeded Serhii Minko as the mayor of Melitopol. On 11 March 2022, the deputy head of the office of the president Kyrylo Tymoshenko stated that Fedorov had been "arrested and abducted by the Russian military." Ukrainian officials reported that "A group of 10 occupiers kidnapped the mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov," Ukraine's parliament said on Twitter. "He refused to cooperate with the enemy". This was corroborated by

Anton Herashchenko Anton Yuriyovych Gerashchenko (, born 10 February 1979) is a current official advisor and a former deputy minister at the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs. He is a former member of the Ukrainian parliament (Verkhovna Rada) from 2014 to 20 ...

and videos released by

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

of Russian soldiers outside a city government building. Subsequent to the actions of the Russian military, the prosecutor general's office of the self-proclaimed

Luhansk People's Republic The Luhansk People's Republic (LPR; , ) is a disputed territory administered as a republic of Russia in the occupied parts of eastern Ukraine's Luhansk Oblast, with its capital in Luhansk. The LPR was proclaimed by Russian-backed paramilitar ...

opened a criminal case against Fedorov. Their investigators stated that he "provided financial and other assistance to the banned nationalist organization

Right Sector Right Sector () is a loosely defined coalition of right-wing to far-right Ukrainian nationalist organizations. It originated in November 2013 as a right-wing, paramilitary confederation of several ultranationalist organizations at the Euroma ...

in committing terrorist crimes against civilians in

Donbas The Donbas (, ; ) or Donbass ( ) is a historical, cultural, and economic region in eastern Ukraine. The majority of the Donbas is occupied by Russia as a result of the Russo-Ukrainian War. The word ''Donbas'' is a portmanteau formed fr ...

." The following day, Saturday, 12 March, former city council member Halyna Danylchenko was installed by the Russian occupation forces with a claim of "acting mayor". On 12 March 2022, the president of Ukraine,

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former entertainer who has served as the sixth and current president of Ukraine since 2019. He took office five years after the start of the Russo-Ukraini ...

, stated that Fedorov was being tortured. Zelenskyy requested his release. On 16 March, Fedorov was freed from captivity and thanked President Zelenskyy in a phone call posted online. Some Ukrainian officials claimed he was freed in a "special operation". Zelenskyy's press aide Daria Zarivna however later claimed he was exchanged for nine Russian conscripts captured by Ukrainian forces; it was later confirmed by ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'' that this prisoner exchange took place in

Kamianske Kamianske (, ; ), previously known as Dniprodzerzhynsk from 1936 to 2016, is an industrial city in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine, and a port on the Dnieper, Dnieper River. It serves as the administrative center of Kamianske Raion and Kamianske ...

. On 16 April, Fedorov attended Easter services in

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican (), or simply St. Peter's Basilica (; ), is a church of the Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the city of Rome, Italy. It was initiall ...

, along with Maria Mezentseva, Olena Khomenko and

Rustem Umerov Rustem Enverovych Umerov (, ; born 19 April 1982) is a Ukrainian politician, businessman, investor, philanthropist and the current Ministry of Defence (Ukraine), Defence Minister of Ukraine. Member of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in- ...

, in front seats.

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

stated "Christ is risen" in Ukrainian at the service. Shortly after his release, Fedorov visited a number of Western European countries to discuss his recent experiences. On 4 February 2024, Fedorov was appointed Governor of Zaporizhizhia Oblast by Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Awards

On 6 March 2022, Fedorov was awarded the Order for Courage III Class for significant personal contribution to the protection of state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, courage and selfless actions shown during the organization of defense of settlements from

Russian army The Russian Ground Forces (), also known as the Russian Army in English, are the Army, land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces are the protection of the state borders, combat on land, ...

during the Battle of Melitopol. He has been awarded the Order of Merit to Zaporizhizhia Oblast II and III class in 2020 and 2017 respectively.

Accusations of Criminal Activity

On May 2, 2024, Maksym Denshchyk, Director of the Legal Department of the Zaporizhzhia City Council, reported on his Facebook page that he was experiencing pressure from Ivan Fedorov, the head of the Governor of Zaporizhizhia Oblast. On the morning of June 11, Denshchyk was gunshot attacked by unknown assailants near his apartment building in Zaporizhzhia. He died from his injuries, and the perpetrators fled the scene.

Personal life

Fedorov was born 29 August 1988. In a 2019 declaration, he stated that he owned an apartment in Melitopol and a house and land in Zaporizhia.

Notes

References