Ihor Baluta
Ihor Myronovych Baluta is a Ukrainian pediatrician, businessman, Ukrainian politician and Governor of Kharkiv Oblast from March 2014 until February 2015.Biography
Baluta was born 9 July 1970 in Kharkiv. In 1993 he graduated from Kharkiv Medical Institute. From 1993 till 1998 he worked at a children's hospital in Kharkiv. Baluta was an assistant at the laboratory of Clinical Immunology and Allergology of the Kharkiv Research Institute of Microbiology and Immunology Department of the Academy of medical sciences of Ukraine in Kharkiv from early 1999 till early 2002. From 2002 till 2005 he was CEO of two commercial enterprises. Late 2004 he participated in the Orange Revolution. From April 2005 till September 2010 Baluta served as head of the main Directorate of labour and social protection of the population of Kharkiv Oblast.
In 2010 he was elected as a Deputy of the Kharkiv Oblast Council. In the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election Baluta was for Batkivshchyna in constituency 168 situated in Kharkiv. He finished second in this race with 29.34%.
On 2 March 2014 Baluta was appointed Governor of Kharkiv Oblast. At the time of his appointment Kharkiv Oblast was in uproar because of pro-Russian protests. On the day of his appointment on his Government office the Ukrainian flag was replaced with a Russian flag. Baluta's first public appearance was two days later when he spoke to a crowd of pro-European demonstrators expressing his support for the new Yatsenyuk Government. From then till 13 April regional state administration building was occupied multiple times by Pro-Russian ; accompanied by violent clashes between Pro-Russian and Pro-Ukrainian demonstrators. Kharkiv returned to relative calm by 30 April.
On 3 February 2015 President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko replaced Baluta and appointed Ihor Raynin as governor in his place.
In the October 2015 Ukrainian local elections Baluta is a candidate for Mayor of Kharkiv for the party Volunteer Party of Ukraine.
