How Zelensky’s ratings have changed after Trump’s statements: what sociology shows
21 February 11:36
ANALYSIS
US President Donald Trump has said that the situation in Ukraine requires elections, as the current President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy ‘s approval rating is allegedly only 4%. According to him, this is not a demand from Russia, but an “objective reality” because Ukraine has not held elections for a long time. However, Trump did not specify the source of this data.
Zelenskyy replied that such changes are impossible. He believes that Trump was incorrectly informed about the low rating of the Ukrainian president. Zelenskyy emphasized that he does not comment on ratings, adding that if we talk about the ratings of leaders, it could indicate a political struggle or the approach of elections, but this is not the case in Ukraine at the moment.
What is Volodymyr Zelenskyi’s actual rating – Komersant ukrainskyi analyzed.
Political analyst Oleg Sahakyan in an exclusive commentary
A direct attack on Zelensky’s legitimacy
According to Oleg Sahakyan, Zelenskyy’s emotional response to Trump’s statements was not accidental.
“It was a direct attack on his legitimacy, not from Russia, but from the United States, using Russian narratives,”
– explained the political scientist.
He added that such statements could have been picked up by other politicians, such as Orban, and it was important for Zelenskyy to “neutralize” them immediately. Sahakian noted that by attacking Zelenskyy, Trump was trying to raise the stakes in the international arena. At the same time, European leaders did not support this criticism and continued to reaffirm Zelenskyy’s legitimacy as a democratically elected president.
“On the one hand, we saw a cascading attack from the United States, and on the other hand, a cascading defense from Europe and collective Ukraine,”
– the political scientist noted.
Trump is looking for compromises, manipulating both sides
Reflecting on Trump’s motives, Sahakian emphasized that the American leader is trying to present himself as a politician who is not “pro-Ukrainian or pro-Russian” but seeks compromises.
“Trump obviously wants to demonstrate to his voters that he is above the fray, seeking to raise the stakes in his negotiations with both sides,”
– Sahakian noted.
The political analyst explained that this tactic of Trump’s – raising the stakes at the very beginning of negotiations – is typical of his political style.
“Trump always raises the stakes at the start of any negotiation. He uses this method with Putin and other world leaders, trying to force them to compromise,”
– Sahakyan noted.
According to him, even if Trump uses aggressive rhetoric, the United States may eventually soften its proposals.
Ukraine’s response made Trump reconsider his tactics
According to Sahakian, the biggest surprise for Trump was Ukraine’s decisive response and Europe’s reaction to his statements.
“They probably didn’t expect such a strong European presence around the issue of supporting Ukraine, so now Trump may roll back half a step,”
– said the political scientist.
Oleg Sahakyan emphasizes that one of Trump’s main goals is to create an image of victory for his domestic audience, and his political maneuvers are aimed at strengthening his position among American voters.
Volodymyr Paniotto, President of KIIS and Professor of the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, specially for
“Electoral ratings, unlike the assessment of attitudes, support and trust, depend on the list of candidates between which respondents choose,”
– explains Paniotto.
That is, even if a politician has relatively low support in society, he or she can achieve high electoral results if his or her competitors have even less support, which often leads to the choice of the “least evil”.
Читайте нас у Telegram: головні новини коротко
Attitudes, support and trust: absolute scores
Attitude, support, and trust scores, on the other hand, are independent of other candidates. Attitude reflects the general impression of the politician, which is measured through questions of the type: “Which of these politicians do you know?” and “How do you feel about this politician in general – positive, negative or neutral?”
Support is an assessment of the actions and statements of a politician, such as the question “To what extent do you approve or disapprove of the actions and statements of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy?”
Trust is a deeper indicator and reflects the extent to which people believe a politician is honest, competent, and acting in their best interests. Questions like: “How much do you trust or distrust the following politicians?”
Increasing and decreasing levels of trust in President Zelenskyy
For several years, the level of trust in President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has fluctuated significantly.
“After the elections in September 2019, he was trusted by 80%, but by February 2022, this figure had dropped to 37%,”
– Paniotto notes.
With the outbreak of the war, there was a significant increase in trust, when in May 2022 this figure jumped to 90%. However, after an unsuccessful counteroffensive in December 2024, the level of trust dropped to 52%, although it rose slightly to 57% in early 2025.
“This may be due to the increased level of uncertainty and perception of danger after the election of Donald Trump as president of the United States,”
– the expert notes.
Approval of Zelenskyy’s activities: high level of support
In terms of support, the International Republican Institute (IRI) showed strong results: 69% of respondents approve of President Zelenskyy’s performance, while only 29% disapprove.
“This is significantly higher than Donald Trump’s approval in the United States, where 52% approve and 46% disapprove,”
– emphasizes Paniotto.
Electoral ratings: Zaluzhnyi, Zelenskyi and other politicians
As for the electoral ratings, due to martial law, no elections were held in Ukraine, and sociologists did not measure the relevant ratings. However, according to the latest data from December 2024 from the Social Monitoring, Zelensky has 22% support and Valeriy Zaluzhny has 42%, according to Paniotto. He also notes that the indicators of electoral ratings strongly depend on the list of candidates offered to voters.
Zelensky continues to lead in voter preferences
According to the study, even with different candidate lists, Volodymyr Zelenskyy remains one of the leaders in electoral sympathies among Ukrainians.
“In all the lists that we checked, at least 20% of voters are ready to vote for Zelensky, and without Zaluzhny, it is already more than 40%,”
– Paniotto concludes.
Thus, despite fluctuations in the levels of trust and support, Volodymyr Zelenskyi continues to hold the leading positions in the electoral ratings of Ukraine.
Thus, despite the criticism and statements of world leaders such as Donald Trump, Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s rating in Ukraine remains consistently high. Sociological studies show that support for the president among Ukrainians is not decreasing, and in the context of the war, when the country is facing numerous challenges, the level of trust in him has even increased. In particular, after the outbreak of the war, trust in Zelenskyy reached a record 90%, indicating that his legitimacy and political support largely depend on his leadership in the crisis. This is also confirmed by the data on support for his actions, which exceeds similar indicators for other world leaders such as Donald Trump. Thus, even in light of the attacks on his legitimacy, Zelenskyy remains an important figure for Ukrainians and continues to hold a leading position among potential candidates in the upcoming elections.
