Public confidence poll reveals Ukraine’s most trusted figures Zelenskyy ranks fourth

Ukraine’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United Kingdom and former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, leads the list of most trusted public figures.

According to the survey, cited by Ukrainian media, 63% of respondents said they trust him, while 22% expressed distrust. The study was carried out between February 13 and 19.

Second and third positions were taken by boxer Oleksandr Usyk and head of the Presidential Office Kyrylo Budanov, who received trust ratings of 56% and 55% respectively, while 22–23% of respondents said they did not trust them.

President Zelenskyy received a 49% trust rating, with 38% of respondents indicating distrust.

A positive balance of trust was also recorded for the head of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, Vitalii Kim, trusted by 39% and distrusted by 29%, as well as Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov, who received 30% trust and 25% distrust. Commander of the Third Army Corps, General Andriy Biletskyi, recorded equal levels of trust and distrust at 26% each.

All other public figures included in the survey showed negative trust balances, meaning that more respondents expressed distrust than trust. The highest distrust levels were recorded among members of parliament, including Batkivshchyna party leader Yulia Tymoshenko, with 70% distrust and 14% trust; European Solidarity leader Petro Poroshenko, with 63% distrust and 24% trust; and head of the parliamentary group Platform for Life and Peace Yuriy Boyko, who recorded 62% distrust and 8% trust.

The survey covered 2,003 Ukrainian citizens of voting age, defined as 18 years and older, living in territories under the control of the Ukrainian government. No quota sampling was applied during data collection in order to preserve the probabilistic nature of the sample, and all adjustments were made afterward through statistical weighting. The margin of error does not exceed 2.2% at a 95% confidence level.

By Tamilla Hasanova