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Article 62
 

The Procedure and Terms for Conducting TV Debates

1. Pre-election debates using electronic (audio-visual) mass media (TV debates) between candidates to the post of President of Ukraine shall commence within the terms envisaged by article 57 of this Law for conducting the pre-election campaign. The TV debates shall be conducted be­tween 19 and 22 hrs in live air.

2. No more than two candidates to the post of the President of Ukraine may simultaneously participate in one and the same TV debate during the pre-election campaign. The schedule of the TV debates shall be made on the basis of the results of drawing lots, which shall be conducted by the Central Election Commission with the participation of the candidates to the post of the President of Ukraine or their proxies. The results of the drawing of lots for the purpose of scheduling TV debates shall be published in the newspapers "Holos Ukrainy" and "Uriadovy Courier" within three days after the day these results were approved by the Central Election Commission and at the expense of funds from the State Budget of Ukraine.

3. The amount of TV debates shall be such as to provide each of the candidates to the post of President of Ukraine with the possibility to take part in them not more than once, provided they express their wish to take part.

4. The duration of the TV debates with the participation of one group of candidates to the post of President of Ukraine may not be less than sixty minutes of uninterrupted broadcast time.

5. In case a decision to conduct repeat voting has been adopted, the TV debates between the candidates to the post of President of Ukraine included in the ballot for the repeat voting shall be organized within five days prior to the day of the repeat voting on live air on the First National Channel of the National TV company of Ukraine between 19 and 22 hrs, with a duration of no less than one-hundred minutes. Such TV debates must be transmitted on the first channel of the National Radio company of Ukraine and may be transmitted free of charge by other broadcasting channels. The candidates to the post of President of Ukraine shall participate in the TV debates personally. In case one of the candidates to the post of President of Ukraine refuses or is unable to participate in the TV debates, the time allocated for such TV debates shall be granted to the other candidate to the post of President of Ukraine for the purpose of conducting his/her pre-election campaign.

6. The National TV company Company of Ukraine shall organize the TV debates between the candidates to the post of President of Ukraine. Other TV and radio organizations holding a license to use broad­casting channels, irrespective ly of the form of their ownership, may also on their initiative organize and conduct TV debates.

7. The Central Election Commission shall provide the payment for the air time allocated for TV debates from the funds from the State Budget of Ukraine allocated for the preparation and conduct of elections, based on the respective agreement that shall be concluded between the Central Election Commission and the National TV Company of Ukraine.

8. TV and radio organizations shall be prohibited from interrupting the transmission of the TV debates.