Over 200 People Notified of Suspicion Over Staging Pseudo-Referendum in Kherson Region

Ukrainian prosecutors have formally notified 237 people that they are suspected of organizing and conducting what Kyiv describes as a pseudo-referendum in the Kherson region, according to Ukraine's state news agency Ukrinform, citing the region's Prosecutor's Office.

The notifications were issued under the procedural supervision of regional prosecution authorities, the report said, as part of Ukraine's broader legal effort to hold individuals accountable for participating in referendums that Russian-installed administrations organized in occupied Ukrainian territory following Moscow's invasion.

Kyiv and most of the international community have rejected such referendums as illegitimate, characterizing them as staged exercises conducted under military occupation rather than genuine expressions of popular will, and Ukrainian authorities have pursued criminal cases against officials and individuals accused of organizing or facilitating them.

Kherson region was partially occupied by Russian forces following the February 2022 invasion, with Moscow subsequently claiming to annex the territory after a referendum that Ukraine and Western governments dismissed as illegal. Ukrainian forces later liberated the regional capital and other areas, though parts of the region remain under Russian control.

Ukrinform's report did not specify how many of the 237 suspects have been apprehended, nor did it detail the specific charges each individual is expected to face or the current status of any related court proceedings.