It is interesting that you write "He also had very wealthy and very powerful friends who backed him and his presidential campaign in a way that only an oligarch in a corrupt country like Ukraine can." - which immediately made me think of the United States. Sadly. It is exactly the same here. "Donors" make our Presidents. Like Adelson bought Trump - and Saban was going to buy Hillary for American citizens, but lost to Adelson. Then, more powerful "donors" brought Biden/Harris. Same in the UK. Official "democracy".