Volodymyr Zelenskiy, a comedian has won the most votes in the first round of the Ukraine elections.
With half the ballots counted, Volodymyr Zelenskiy got about 30%, with current leader Petro Poroshenko on 16%.
The two (who have expressed largely pro-EU opinions) are set to take part in a run-off election next month.
Meanwhile, the former prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko appears to have been eliminated from the Ukraine elections.
Zelenskiy is aiming to turn his satirical TV show Servant of the People – in which he portrays an ordinary citizen who becomes president after fighting corruption – into reality.
He has torn up the rulebook for election campaigning, staging no rallies and giving few interviews. He appears to have no strong political views apart from a wish to be new and different.
His extensive use of social media appealed to younger voters.
Interestingly, his readiness to speak both Russian and Ukrainian, at a time when language rights are a hugely sensitive topic, gained him support in Ukraine’s Russian-speaking side.