Solomiia Bobrovska

Соломія БобровськаPeople's Deputy of UkraineAssumed office
29 August 2019ConstituencyHolos, No. 9Governor of Odesa OblastIn office
9 November 2016 – 12 January 2017Preceded byMikheil SaakashviliSucceeded byMaksym Stepanov Personal detailsBorn (1989-12-20) 20 December 1989 (age 34)
Rivne, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union (now Ukraine)Political partyHolosAlma materUniversity of Lviv

Solomiia Anatoliivna Bobrovska (Ukrainian: Соломія Анатоліївна Бобровська; born 20 December 1989) is a Ukrainian politician and civic activist currently serving as a People's Deputy of Ukraine on the proportional list of the Holos party since 2019.^[1][2] From 2016 to 2017, she served as the Acting Governor of Odesa Oblast.^[3]

Since 2022, Solomiia has been a member of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, Defence and Intelligence.

Education

From 2007 to 2012, Bobrovska studied at the Philosophy Faculty of the University of Lviv, obtaining a master's degree.^[4] She completed her Ph.D. on "Freedom as a source of social and legal legitimation of civil society".^[5]

From 2005 to 2007, she studied at the Regional Information and Computer Center of the Rivne Regional Administration.

She is a graduate of the Institute of Civic Leadership,^[4] and of the joint project between the Laboratory of the Legislative Initiatives and the Council of Europe.^[6]

In 2010, as part of the Canadian-Ukrainian parliamentary program, she completed an internship at the Parliament of Canada in the office of Liberal Party MP Andrew Kania.

In 2017, she interned at the Women's Council of Public Administration of Massachusetts (Boston, United States).

Civic activity

In 2002, Bobrovska became a member of the national scout organisation Plast^[7] She joined the NGO "Foundation of Regional Initiatives"^[4] in 2009.

Bobrovska was an activist in the civic movement "Honestly. Filter the Rada!"(Ukrainian: "Чесно. Фільтруй Раду!"). She was a co-founder of the Euromaidan SOS and Help the SBGSU.^[5]

In 2012-2014 and in 2015, she was the curator of projects of the public organization "Civil Liberties Center".

In 2018-2019, she headed the NGO "Ukrainian Osnova", one of the directions of which is the project of the Studio of Women's Political Interaction for women of southern and eastern Ukraine.

Solomiia Bobrovska took active part in the support campaign of Serhii Sternenko.^[8]

Professional experience

In 2010, as a part of the Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Program, she interned at the Parliament of Canada in the office of Andrew Kania.^[9]

In 2012–2014, and from January to June 2015, Bobrovska was a project manager at the Centre of Civil Liberties.

In April–December 2014, she served as an advisor to Oleksandr Sych, the Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine.^[5] From October 2015 through April 2016, she served as an advisor to the Governor of Odesa Region, Mikheil Saakashvili.^[5]

From April 2016 until January 2017, Bobrovska served as a Deputy Governor of Odesa Oblast.^[3] On 9 November 2016, Saakashvili resigned, and she was appointed Acting Governor.^[10] 26 years old at the time of her appointment, Bobrovska became the youngest Governor in Ukraine's history. She left the post on 12 January 2017.

From September–November 2017, Bobrovska completed a fellowship at the Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators (Boston, USA).^[5] In 2018–2019, she served as head of the NGO "Ukrainian Core", focusing on the Women's Political Interaction Studies Project for women of Southern and Eastern Ukraine.^[5]

Political activity

Bobrovska was one of the core members of the group around Svyatoslav Vakarchuk who initiated the Holos party (Ukrainian: Голос).^[11] She was a candidate at the 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election as the ninth candidate on the party's proportional list.^[1][2] In the election, Holos won 5.82% of the vote, leading to the election of the first seventeen members of the proportional list (as well as three candidates in Lviv Oblast) as People's Deputy of Ukraine.^[12]

She has served as Secretary of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs and Inter-parliamentary Cooperation,^[2] Deputy Head of Ukrainian Delegation to the NATO PA,^[13] and as Co-Head of the Latvia-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Group.^[14]

On 29 July 2021, Holos expelled Bobrovska from the party; the party stated that it could not envisage "building a common political force" with her or with the six other People's Deputies who were also ousted.^[15] Earlier that day, Bobrovska herself had written a resignation statement, expressing dissatisfaction with Kira Rudik's leadership of the party.^[15]

References