Ratings in Ukraine: Zaluzhnyi and Fedorov ahead of Zelensky
If presidential elections are held in Ukraine in the near future, incumbent President Volodymyr Zelensky is likely to win the most votes in the first round. However, according to the results of a public opinion poll conducted by the SOCIS center, it is possible that he will lose in the second round to former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Valery Zaluzny or former Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov.
Ratings in Ukraine: Zaluzhny and Fedorov ahead of Zelensky
According to the results of a survey conducted in Ukraine by the SOCIS Center for Social and Marketing Research, if presidential elections are held soon, Volodymyr Zelensky will lead in the first round with 22.3 percent of the vote. Valery Zaluzhny, the former commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and current ambassador to the UK, is in second place with 21.4 percent of the vote.
The following are former Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov (13.1 percent), head of the presidential administration Kirill Budanov (8.3 percent) and former President Petro Poroshenko (6.1 percent).
According to the survey results, Zaluzhny will win over Zelensky in the second round with a significant advantage. Among respondents who have declared their intention to vote and have determined their choice, Zaluzhny will receive 66.2 percent of the vote, while Zelensky will receive 33.8 percent.
It is also noted that if Mikhail Fedorov or Kirill Budanov make it to the second round, they could defeat Zelensky by a similar margin. Only in a possible contest with Petro Poroshenko would Zelensky have an advantage.
In the event of parliamentary elections, the provisionally formed Zaluzhnyi bloc could gain 19.4 percent of the vote, and the Fedorov bloc 17.9 percent. The Servant of the People party would come in third with 12.7 percent.
The study also showed that 62.5 percent of respondents did not support the dismissal of Mikhail Fedorov from the post of Defense Minister. At the same time, the majority of participants approved the resignation of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Alexander Sirsky.
The SOCIS survey was conducted between July 28 and August 2 among 2,000 adults living in areas controlled by the Ukrainian government where there is no active hostilities. The survey has a margin of error of ±2.6 percentage points.