Zelenskyy becomes politician, disappointment, person, and meme of the year at the same time—poll

Author

Mariia Makukha

For a second consecutive year, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy tops the ratings "Politician of the Year" and "Disappointment of the Year". However, in both cases, an increase in figures is noticeable. This year, 17% of respondents named Zelenskyy "Politician of the Year", while in 2020—14.8%. On the other hand, 45% of those surveyed called Zelenskyy the "Disappointment of the Year", while in 2020 he was considered the "Loser of the Year" by 28%. The results of the poll taken by Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation together with the sociological service of the Razumkov Center testify to it.

Politician of the Year

Ex-president Petro Poroshenko (8.1%) and ex-speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Dmytro Razumkov (8%) share the second place in the nomination "Politician of the Year". But in the category "Disappointment of the Year" Poroshenko is mentioned more often (8.5%) than Razumkov (3%). Almost 15% of the respondents said that there was no one to be named "politician of the year", almost 20% found it difficult to answer, and 5% did not want to answer this question. Among those who were mentioned only as the "politician of the year" were Yuriy Boiko (3.7%), Yevhen Muraiev (3.4%), Ihor Smeshko (1.8%), Volodymyr Groysman (1.4%), and Serhiy Prytula (1%).

Disappointment of the Year

The respondents named Mykola Tyshchenko (1.2%), Illia Kyva (1.2%), and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal (1.1%) solely as the "Disappointment of the Year". Another 3% of respondents said that they were disappointed by all politicians, 1.3% of respondents answered that they could not name someone the disappointment of the year, almost 15% found it difficult to answer, and 4% did not want to answer this question.

Person of the Year

The Ukrainians also named Zelenskyy the symbol of 2021—"Person of the Year." Poroshenko (3.6%), Razumkov (3.3%), Angela Merkel (3.1%), and Elon Musk (3%) share second place. Joe Biden got an honorary "bronze" in this nomination (2.7%).

Meme of the Year

The majority of respondents (5.2%) called the "press conference of Volodymyr Zelenskyy" the meme of 2021, and another 3.4% called Volodymyr Zelenskyy himself. The Mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko and the People's Deputy Mykola Tyshchenko got 2.6% each, in particular, because of their statements "on food prices". Almost the same number, 2.5% of respondents, called "1,000 hryvnia from Zelenskyy" the meme, and Illia Kyva amused 2.1% of respondents , including as "Kyva the scientist".

Event of the Year in Ukraine and the World

If in 2020 the majority of respondents called the coronavirus epidemic the main event in Ukraine, then this year, with a significantly lower result, three events "claim" this title: in addition to the coronavirus pandemic (6.5%), the respondents named the 30th anniversary of Independence (6.3%) and vaccination against coronavirus (5.9%).

4.4% of the respondents mentioned the resignation of Dmytro Razumkov, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, as the "Event of the Year"; for 3.8% "Wagnergate" was such an event, and 3.7% believed that this is the "law on land".

3% of the respondents identified the threat of Russia's invasion of Ukraine as the event of the year, while another 2.8% called the war such an event.

Among the world events, respondents named the following ones: the coronavirus pandemic (12.1%), the election of a new German Chancellor (6.6%), events in Afghanistan, the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan (6.5%), Putin-Biden negotiations (5.6 %), elections in the USA (4.8%), vaccination against coronavirus (4.5%), the situation with refugees on the border of Belarus and Poland (2.5%), events in Belarus (1.9%), the threat of Russian invasion (1.6%), Biden-Zelenskyy negotiations(1.2%), and war (1.1%).

Expectations of Ukrainians regarding the next 2022

Ukrainians welcome in 2022 mainly with hope (43%) and anxiety (34%) regarding the future of the state. Men 6% more often than women mentioned such emotions as optimism, while women more than men feel fear (5% difference) and are confused (7% difference) when discussing the fate of the country. The age distribution of the respondents indicates that the younger the generation, the more optimism and hope its representatives feel in comparison with the older age groups.

Despite their closeness to the war zone, it is the inhabitants of the East of the country who are most optimistic about the future of Ukraine—there are 31% of them. Southerners have more negative feelings: 19% feel hopelessness, 11%—pessimism, 44%—anxiety, and 21%—fear.