Vitalii Bezghin

Biography

Vitalii Bezghin became a Member of the Ukrainian Parliament of the IX convocation in 2019, representing the “Servant of the People” party. He is a member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on the Organisation of State Power, Local Self-Government, Regional Development, and Urban Planning, where he heads the Subcommittee on Administrative-Territorial Structure and Local Self-Government.

On one hand, Vitalii Bezghin has often maintained a position that he defended, having become a parliamentary driver of decentralisation within the committee (thanks to his initiatives, the relevant committee became a discussion platform for deputies, the government, and experts at the start of the reform). On the other hand, he failed to become a politician independent of the views held by Bankova Street (the Presidential Office). As a result, this contributed to the decentralisation process remaining incomplete: while communities gained funds and powers, state oversight of local self-government bodies was never implemented. Bezghin was the author of the first version of the well-known draft law #4298 from 2020, which was agreed upon by all stakeholders, including the authorities, local self-government associations, and experts. However, under pressure from Bankova, Bezghin rewrote the draft before its second reading in favour of the President, violating not only the balance of power in the future public administration system but also the further fate of the reform. Local self-government (in particular, the Association of Ukrainian Cities) effectively blocked the completion of the reform.

Timeline of Key Events

2026

Voted in the first reading for the controversial draft Civil Code (15150) submitted by the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, Ruslan Stefanchuk. The 803-page draft, which the Ministry of Justice had not managed to review within three weeks of registration, was fast-tracked through parliament. The legislative initiative contained provisions allowing for the carve-up of state and municipal property—forests, coastlines, and subsoil resources. Additionally, the project contained risks to freedom of speech. Following the parliamentary vote, street protests broke out in several regions. A petition demanding a veto garnered over 25,000 signatures on the first day of registration. Judges of the Supreme Court also expressed substantial objections. The draft Civil Code, which had not undergone proper discussion, effectively destroyed judicial practice developed over 20 years.

2025

Voted for the liquidation of the independence of anti-corruption bodies, namely the NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (Draft Law #12414). Following the vote, protests erupted near Bankova Street, and the President signed the law the same day. However, in late July, due to public pressure and pressure from international partners, parliament supported a new presidential initiative—Draft Law #13533, which Bezghin voted for—that restored the powers of the anti-corruption bodies.

Supported the so-called “Ihor Mazepa Law” (Draft Law 12089), which provided for the “resetting” of claims regarding illegally acquired forests and coastal lands if ten years had passed since they entered private ownership. Despite a petition gathering over 25,000 signatures demanding a veto, the President signed the document. The first victim of the law was the case concerning Protasiiv Yar.

2023

Supported the “Medical Cannabis Legalization” bill, which allowed the production of medical cannabis in Ukraine for the rehabilitation of wounded military personnel, including for the treatment of PTSD.

Bezghin was one of 12 MPs who, as of April 1, voluntarily submitted their declarations for 2021 and 2022, as previously required by law.

In the same year, it was revealed that in 2020, Bezghin had issued a power of attorney in Crimea to his aunt, Halyna Herasymova, who at the time of the agreement was a deputy of the “State Council of Crimea” representing the ruling Putin party, “United Russia.” According to Bezghin himself, he does not and never did own property in Crimea, and several years ago received notice that he had a right to an inheritance (a share of a 60 sqm apartment) from his grandparents, who had died after the annexation. After consulting with the NACP, he decided to issue a power of attorney under Ukrainian law to a relative physically located in Yevpatoria in order to renounce the inheritance on his own behalf.

2022

Voted for the urban planning “reform” (#5655), authored by the head of the “Servant of the People” party, Olena Shulyak. The initiative was widely criticised by the civil sector and media, and Chatham House (UK) warned that the rules created a risk of construction cartels forming. The European Parliament and the European Commission also expressed critical reservations.

In the same year, at a committee meeting, Bezghin voted for the scandalous draft law #7654 by “Servant of the People” MP Andrii Klochko. It was an attempt to disrupt the transparent competition for the head of the NABU, which could have harmed the work of key anti-corruption institutions—the NACP, the SBI, and the ESBU. The initiative drew criticism from the civil sector and G7 countries, who viewed it as a threat to the independence of the anti-corruption system. It is worth noting that at the same time, Bezghin co-initiated an appeal expressing no confidence in committee chair Andrii Klochko, who was eventually removed from the post.

Became a signatory to an appeal to the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, Ruslan Stefanchuk, demanding that the parliament consider draft laws on stripping parliamentary and local council mandates from MPs elected from banned pro-Russian parties.

2021

Signed a statement in support of Serhii Sternenko, who had been sentenced to seven years in prison by a court. Together with his colleagues, Bezghin called for a transparent trial and the acceleration of judicial reform.

Joined the Verkhovna Rada’s Temporary Investigative Commission on investigating potential actions of officials and other persons that could have contributed to the violation of Ukraine’s state sovereignty.

2020

Joined a group of “Servant of the People” MPs who appealed to the Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council, Oleksii Danilov, demanding the dismissal of Serhii Syvokho from the post of freelance advisor due to his statements supporting the “Anti-Maidan” and his participation in Donbas reintegration events. That same year, Bezghin joined a statement on the non-recognition of the presidential election results in Belarus and called for a suspension of public dialogue with official Minsk. Additionally, he spoke out against the creation of an advisory board within the Trilateral Contact Group involving representatives of the occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

Became one of the authors of a draft resolution on the dismissal of Arsen Avakov from the post of Minister of Internal Affairs, which was actively supported by journalists and the civil sector.

The Russian Federation imposed special economic sanctions against Bezghin.

2019-2020

As head of the relevant subcommittee, coordinated the continuation of decentralisation, specifically the processes of creating a new regionalisation. With his participation, parliament made the decision to reduce the number of districts from 490 to 136. The European Parliament later recognised decentralisation as one of Ukraine’s most successful reforms.

2019

Elected as a People’s Deputy of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (#77 on the list).

2018

Served as a board member of the Democratic Alliance party and co-authored the party’s program. A year prior, as a member of the bureau of the party’s Kyiv city organisation, he worked on a draft law proposal “On the Capital.”

2016

Began working as an expert at the Better Regulation Delivery Office (BRDO), representatives of which ran for parliament in 2019 under the quota of future Prime Minister Oleksii Honcharuk.

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