On December 1, 1991, a nationwide referendum on Ukraine’s independence was held. The referendum ballot contained the text of the Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine, adopted by the Verkhovna Rada on August 24, 1991.
The question was: “Do you confirm the Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine?” with two possible answers: “Yes, I confirm” or “No, I do not confirm.”
The Ukrainian people confirmed their desire to live in an independent state – 90.32% of referendum participants answered: “Yes, I confirm.” In total, 31,891,742 people took part in the vote – 84.18% of Ukraine’s population.
The referendum was held in all 27 administrative regions of Ukraine: 24 oblasts, the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Kyiv, and Sevastopol.
In Kyiv, 92.88% of voters supported Ukraine’s independence; in Donetsk Oblast – 83.9%; in Luhansk Oblast – 83.86%. In the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, 54.19% of voters said “Yes” to the independence of the Ukrainian state, while in Sevastopol the figure was higher – 57.07%.
Only after December 1, 1991, did other countries of the world begin to recognize Ukraine:
December 2 – Poland and Canada
December 3 – Hungary
December 4 – Latvia and Lithuania
December 5 – the Russian Federation, Argentina, Bulgaria, and so on
And on December 8, 1991, the Belovezh Accords declared the dissolution of the USSR.
Simultaneously with the referendum, on December 1, the first presidential elections in the history of the independent Ukrainian state were held, at which Leonid Kravchuk was elected head of state (61.59% of the votes). Viacheslav Chornovil took second place (23.27%), while Levko Lukianenko came third (4.49%). In total, 6 candidates ran for president.