Ukraine president has 25% public approval rating, poll reports

About 25% of the Ukrainian public approves of the performance of President Petro Poroshenko, according to a poll released on Jan. 13 by the Reytynh sociological group in Kyiv. About 70% of Ukrainians disapprove of his performance. About 12% approve of the performance of Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, while 82% disapprove. The politician with the highest approval rating is Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi at 41%, followed by Odesa Regional Administration Head Mikheil Saakashvili at 35% and Zakarpattia Regional Administration Head Hennadiy Moskal at 29 percent.

If parliamentary elections were to be held now, the Petro Poroshenko Bloc would earn 15%. About 12% of respondents would vote for the Russian-oriented Opposition Bloc, 11% for the populist Fatherland party, 10% for the Self-Reliance party, 6% for the Freedom Party, 5% for the Radical Party and 5% for the Ukrop party. The poll was conducted among 1,800 respondents between Nov. 19 and 30. It was ordered by the International Republican Institute in Washington.

Zenon Zawada: The president’s ratings aren’t as bad as they could be. They are a direct reflection of Ukrainians’ attitude of how the war is being handled. We expect his support will decline once elections are organized for occupied Donbas. The prime minister’s ratings are a direct reflection of the public’s view of the economy, which is in disastrous shape.

What’s not so positive for the president is the parliamentary poll. The five pro-Western parties, which have taken positions more-or-less against the president and his handling of the war, have a combined support of 37%, far higher than the support for the president’s party. That 37% figure confirms that both the president and prime minister have no interest in holding early elections. Yet the need to gain parliamentary approval for Donbas local elections, and the creation of an autonomous special status, may force a domestic conflict that will require early elections.