Trust in Zelensky falling among public, polls says

Public trust in
Ukrainian President Zelensky has fallen dramatically since September, according
to the latest poll published on Dec. 26. About 30.9% of Ukrainians said they
don’t trust Zelensky, compared to 62.6% of Ukrainians who do, resulting in a
positive balance of 31.7%. In September, about 13.5% of Ukrainians said they
don’t trust Zelensky, compared to 79.4% who do, resulting in a positive balance
of 65.9%, according to the same poll.

The Armed Forces of
Ukraine enjoys the most trust among the public, enjoying a positive balance of
48.3%, the poll said. It was followed by the church (39.8%), volunteer
organizations (38.6%), and the State Service on Emergency Situations (33.4%).
The poll was conducted by the Razumkov Center and Kucheriv Democratic
Initiatives Fund between Dec. 13 and 18 involving 2,017 respondents.

Zenon Zawada: The fall in Zelensky’s popularity
was inevitable, but accelerated by his support for the unpopular farmland
market, ongoing reports of corruption, lacking prosecutions of high-profile
criminal cases,
and his participation in the bizarre press briefing announcing Pavel Sheremet’s
alleged murderers,
which has little credibility among the public (U.S. acting ambassador to
Ukraine William Taylor, Jr. also expressed his doubts recently). Small- and
medium-sized enterprises have complained his proposed reforms have made
conditions worse
for them.

Zelensky’s job in 2020 is to secure his core electorate that will
support him for the remainder of his presidency. The way to accomplish that is
to end the warfare in Donbas by submitting to most Russian demands, and to deal
firmly with the pro-Western opposition that will react with mass protests, if
not physical rebellion. Without securing the support of his core electorate,
Zelensky leaves himself, and The People’s Servant party, vulnerable to
political attacks that will inevitable mount. Not only will they not appeal to
any segment of the public, but they will be targeted with dissatisfaction and
criticism from all segments.