KIIS poll: corruption now worries Ukrainians more than missile strikes
A September 2026 poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology found that 50% of Ukrainians are most worried about corruption in government, compared with 40% who cited massive Russian missile and drone strikes. Seventy-two percent said corruption has worsened since the full-scale invasion, and the same share said President Volodymyr Zelensky bears personal responsibility for corrupt actions by people in his circle.
Key points
- Poll conducted by KIIS between 12 and 21 September 2026; 1,002 respondents aged 18+ in government-controlled territories.
- 50% cited corruption in government as their top worry; 40% cited massive Russian missile and drone strikes.
- 64% chose either corruption in government or incompetence of the authorities as a top worry; 53% chose missile-drone strikes or the situation at the front.
- 72% believe the level of corruption in Ukraine has increased since the start of the full-scale invasion; 6% said it has decreased.
- 72% said President Volodymyr Zelensky bears personal responsibility for corrupt actions by people in his circle; 25% said he does not.
- Among other top concerns: incompetence of authorities (30%), low wages and pensions (28%), activity of military recruitment centers (24%), rising prices (23%), situation at the front (21%).
Why it matters
The poll captures a notable shift in public mood: for the first time in KIIS tracking, governance concerns (corruption and incompetence, 64% combined) have edged ahead of direct war-related fears (missile-drone strikes and the front, 53% combined) as Ukrainians' top worries. The finding that 72% hold Zelensky personally responsible for corruption in his circle gives the snapshot clear political weight, while concerns about military recruitment centers (TCC) signal continued public friction over mobilization.
What happened
KIIS conducted a nationwide telephone poll between 12 and 21 September 2026, interviewing 1,002 respondents aged 18 and over in government-controlled regions of Ukraine. Respondents were read 12 options and could pick up to three answers to the question of what worried them most at that time. The top answer was corruption in government (50%), followed by massive Russian missile and drone strikes (40%), incompetence of the authorities (30%), low wages and pensions (28%), the activity of territorial recruitment centers (24%), rising prices (23%) and the situation at the front (21%). Combined, 64% named a governance-related concern and 53% named a war-related one. Separately, 72% said corruption in Ukraine has increased since the full-scale invasion, and 72% said Zelensky bears personal responsibility for corrupt actions by people in his circle, with 25% disagreeing and 3% abstaining. KIIS stressed that 'responsibility' in respondents' minds is closer to political responsibility than to personal involvement in corruption, and that among those who 'completely do not trust' Zelensky, 85% hold him responsible. The poll was part of KIIS's regular Omnibus survey, with the corruption and concerns questions commissioned by the NGO Forum.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian outlets framed the poll primarily around the corruption finding and around the political accountability of the president. Several ran Zelensky's 72% personal-responsibility number in their headlines, presenting the data as a snapshot of public mood that should pressure authorities on anti-corruption reform and government competence.
Where reporting differs
An earlier April 2026 KIIS poll, using a prompted question, found 54% naming corruption and 39% naming the Russian invasion as the greater threat to the country. A separate open-format 2026 KIIS question produced the opposite ordering, with 65% naming the war and 29% naming corruption as Ukraine's biggest challenge. The September 2026 result, with corruption (50%) again leading missile-drone strikes (40%), shows the relative ranking of war versus corruption as top concern flipping between question formats and over the course of 2026.
Background
The poll was the September 2026 wave of KIIS's nationwide Omnibus survey, with additional questions on concerns and corruption commissioned by the NGO Forum. KIIS noted that, under wartime conditions, an additional systematic deviation is added on top of the formal margin of error (up to 4.1% for indicators near 50%), though the institute said the results remain highly representative.