Zelenskyy's trust rating holds at 54% despite corruption scandals, KIIS poll finds
A poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology conducted from 21 August to 10 September shows that 54% of Ukrainians trust President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, virtually unchanged from late July/early August. The result comes amid recent NABU and SAP anti-corruption investigations linked to his office, and KIIS's executive director warned that the cumulative effect of such cases could become irreversible.
Key points
- 54% of respondents said they trust Zelenskyy; 41% said they do not — a net trust balance of +13%.
- 18% said they trust him 'fully', 36% 'somewhat'; 25% said they do not trust him 'at all', 16% 'somewhat'.
- The figure is almost unchanged from late July/early August, when 55% expressed trust and 40% did not.
- KIIS conducted the poll on its own initiative, by phone, from a random sample of mobile numbers.
- 1,003 respondents aged 18+ living in government-controlled territory of Ukraine were surveyed.
- KIIS executive director Anton Hrushetsky said Zelenskyy retains fairly high trust and legitimacy as head of state, but warned that the cumulative negative effect of corruption investigations could become irreversible.
- The 'Forest Gump' NABU/SAP investigation led to the dismissal of Deputy Head of the Office of the President Iryna Mudra; a separate 'Carthage' investigation touched the Office of the Prosecutor General.
Why it matters
The poll tests whether high-profile NABU and SAP corruption investigations tied to the President's Office are eroding Zelenskyy's political legitimacy. With no election cycle yet under way, the figures serve as a baseline for how the public is absorbing repeated corruption scandals. Hrushetsky's warning that the effect of multiple cases could turn irreversible adds a forward-looking caveat to otherwise stable numbers.
What happened
The Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) released a telephone poll conducted from 21 August to 10 September on its own initiative, surveying 1,003 respondents aged 18 and over in government-controlled territory. Fifty-four percent of respondents said they trust President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, while 41% said they do not — a net trust balance of +13%. Eighteen percent said they trust him 'fully' and 36% 'somewhat'; 25% said they do not trust him 'at all' and 16% 'somewhat'. The result is essentially unchanged from a late July/early August reading of 55% trust and 40% distrust. The poll was released against the backdrop of the NABU/SAP 'Forest Gump' investigation, which led to the dismissal of Deputy Head of the Office of the President Iryna Mudra, and the 'Carthage' investigation, which touched the Office of the Prosecutor General. KIIS executive director Anton Hrushetsky noted that Zelenskyy retains fairly high trust and legitimacy as head of state but cautioned that the cumulative negative effect of multiple anti-corruption investigations into his team and circle could become irreversible. The published margin of error under normal conditions does not exceed 4.1% for figures close to 50%, with some deviation possible under wartime conditions.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
The single available source, a Ukrainian outlet, frames the story through KIIS's own interpretation, foregrounding executive director Anton Hrushetsky. The headline emphasizes that trust levels have 'almost not changed' against the backdrop of the corruption scandals — a framing of resilience rather than decline — while still carrying Hrushetsky's warning about the possible cumulative cost of repeated anti-corruption cases.
Background
In April 2026, a KIIS poll found that 54% of respondents named corruption as the bigger threat to the country, compared with 39% who named military aggression. As of 10 August, the highest trust ratings among Ukrainian politicians were held by Valeriy Zaluzhny (66%), Mykhaylo Fedorov (63%), and Kyrylo Budanov. In August, 15% of respondents (up from 12% in March) said elections in Ukraine should be held after a ceasefire but before a final peace agreement is signed.