Ukrainian parliamentarian Orest Salamakha killed in quad bike accident
Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
Ukrainian Member of Parliament Orest Salamakha, a member of the ruling Servant of the People party, has died after a quad bike he was driving collided with a minibus on Jan. 25, state investigators reported.
David Arakhamia, the head of the Servant of the People Parliamentary Faction, announced Salamakha's death on social media, which Arakhamia said occurred "during the dark hours, on a busy stretch of road near Lviv."
"Our sincere condolences go out to the family. We share the pain and sorrow of this untimely loss," Arakhamia added.
The accident occurred in the community of Sokilnyky in Lviv Oblast around 6:15 p.m. local time, the State Bureau of Investigation announced. Preliminary information appears to indicate that Salamakha entered oncoming traffic before colliding with a commercial minibus.
No other casualties or injuries were sustained as a result of the accident. A full investigation into Salamakha's death is ongoing, the State Bureau of Investigation said.
A spokesperson for the Servant of the People party initially told Ukrainska Pravda that Salamakha, a father of three, was taken to hospital before succumbing to his injuries.
Salamakha, 34, was first elected to Ukraine's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, in 2019.
News of Salamakha's death comes as President Volodymyr Zelensky's control of his party's now 226-seat majority, in the 450-seat Verkhovna Rada, continues to fade.
Zelensky has not yet commented on Salamakha's death.
To pass a decision, Ukraine's parliament needs at least 226 votes. Following 2019 parliamentary elections, Zelensky's party held a super majority in parliament — 254 seats. Over time, the party began to struggle to secure enough votes, and after the full-scale invasion, a growing number of lawmakers resigned or left the parliamentary faction.
Despite still holding a slim majority, Servant of the People usually lacks votes to pass laws due to inconsistent attendance.
Earlier this month, Zelensky's faction failed to secure enough votes to appoint former Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal as the country's next energy minister.
