Zelenskyy's support decreases after Zaluzhnyi's resignation - survey
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's decision to dismiss the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, has reduced the level of trust Ukrainians have in the president, according to a KIIS survey.
According to sociologists, in February 2022, before the invasion, Zelenskyy had the trust of 37% of the population. After the start of the full-scale war and amidst his actions and the overall rally around the flag effect, trust in him sharply increased to 90% by May 2022.
However, between May 2022 and December 2023, throughout one and a half years, trust in Zelenskyy decreased by 13% - from 90% to 77%.
In the following two months leading up to early February, he lost another 12 points of trust, dropping from 77% to 65%.
Shortly after Zaluzhnyi's resignation, trust decreased by another 5 points to 60%. Thus, during February 5-10, 64% of the population trusted Zelenskyy, but by the end of this period, the figure stood at 60%.
Sociologists examined how Zaluzhnyi's resignation affected Zelenskyy's ratings (KIIS)
KIIS comments
As executive director of KIIS Anton Hrushetskyi noted, the period between December 2023 and February 2024, two months, was full of events, but the resignation of Zaluzhnyi was obviously the most resonant.
"The results of the survey do not give an opportunity to talk about the specific reasons for the increase or decrease in trust, but we can assume that there is a joint effect of the resignation of V. Zaluzhnyi, which was superimposed on a rather difficult period - a difficult situation at the front, the uncertain position of Ukraine's key allies (especially the USA ), continuation of corruption scandals," he said. " At the same time, it should be taken into account that the survey took place in a very "hot" period, so it will be possible to talk about the crystallization of a certain attitude a little later when the emotions of all participants have cooled down".
According to him, amidst these events, Zelenskyy experienced the largest loss of trust, yet the majority of Ukrainians continued to trust him.
"In addition, it is fundamentally important that the new Commander-in-Chief enjoys the trust of the population and the history of the resignation of V. Zaluzhnyi did not affect O. Syrskyi's trust indicators," the sociologist added.
The survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) was conducted on February 5-10 among 1,202 respondents. Some (874 interviews) were conducted up to February 8, before Zaluzhnyi's resignation. The remaining 328 interviews were conducted after the resignation on February 9 and 10.
According to KIIS survey data, in early February, among the 13 people on the list, the highest level of trust among Ukrainians was in the former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valerii Zaluzhnyi - 94%. Only 5% distrusted him, and compared to December, the situation almost did not change.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on February 8 his decision to dismiss Valerii Zaluzhnyi from the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Instead, Oleksandr Syrskyi was appointed as the new Commander-in-Chief.
