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69% of Ukrainians have trust in President Zelensky, poll finds

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69% of Ukrainians have trust in President Zelensky, poll finds
President Volodymyr Zelensky attends the 50th European House Ambrosetti (TEHA) Forum in Italy on Sept. 6, 2024. (Alessandro Bremec/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Some 69% of Ukrainians trust President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to a poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology published on March 27.

The results counter claims by tech billionaire Elon Musk, a close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, who wrote on X on March 6 that Zelensky would "lose by a landslide" if Ukraine held an election.

The survey found that only 28% of respondents do not trust Zelensky, resulting in a trust-distrust balance of +41%. Conducted from March 12 to 22, the poll interviewed 1,326 adults in government-controlled territories.

The poll indicates that trust in Zelensky remains relatively stable, with no significant change from a previous survey conducted from Feb. 14 to March 4.

A prior poll published on March 7 showed that Zelensky's approval rating had risen to 68% following his tense Feb. 28 meeting with Trump at the White House, which ended in a public dispute over security guarantees and the cancellation of a minerals agreement.

Trump has also labeled Zelensky a "dictator without elections," blaming him for prolonging the war. However, Ukraine's constitution prohibits elections under martial law, which has been in effect since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.

Legal experts say Zelensky's term extension is permitted under Ukrainian law.

A February survey before the clash with Trump put Zelensky's trust level at 57%, with a trust-distrust balance of +20%.

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Tim Zadorozhnyy

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Tim Zadorozhnyy is the reporter for the Kyiv Independent, specializing in foreign policy, U.S.-Ukraine relations, and political developments across Europe and Russia. He studied International Relations and European Studies at Lazarski University and Coventry University and is now based in Warsaw. Tim began his journalism career in Odesa in 2022, working as a reporter at a local television channel. After relocating to Warsaw, he spent a year and a half with the Belarusian independent media outlet NEXTA, initially as a news anchor and later as managing editor. Tim is fluent in English, Ukrainian, and Russian.

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