Kathrine Frich
Public trust has never fallen this low during the entire conflict
Maintaining public support during a long conflict is one of the toughest challenges any leader can face.
When domestic pressures mount and security threats hit close to home, public mood shifts quickly.
For a long time, leadership figures appeared untouchable, but new data suggests that reality is changing.
Growing public doubt
A major polling agency in Russia just released some surprising numbers. According to a survey by the Public Opinion Foundation, known as FOM cited by Meduza, public trust in President Vladimir Putin has tumbled to 69%.
This marks a significant five-point drop from just one week earlier.
The timing is hard to ignore. Researchers conducted the interviews right after a massive Ukrainian attack struck Moscow. It seems the reality of the war reaching the capital has shaken public confidence.
Distrust is also rising. The FOM poll showed that people who do not trust the president jumped from 15% to 18% in seven days. At the same time, his overall job approval rating slipped from 75% to 71%.
A wartime low
This 69% figure represents a historic low point. As the independent media outlet The Bell pointed out, public trust had never fallen this low during the entire conflict.
Not even the most chaotic moments of the past few years caused such a slump.
During the military mobilization of September 2022, support held steady.
When Russian forces retreated from Kherson later that year, the numbers stayed up. Even when Yevgeny Prigozhin led an armed mutiny in 2023, trust never dropped below 74%.
But pressure has been building. Earlier this year, Putin’s trust rating dipped to 71% before bouncing back. This time, the slide appears much steeper.
Rising daily costs
It is not just the war causing anxiety. The economy is also biting, and people are feeling a squeeze at the pump. The FOM survey revealed that 48% of respondents noticed a sharp rise in gasoline prices, up from 38% the week before.
This economic pain is hurting the wider government too.
Approval for the cabinet’s performance dropped by four percentage points over the week, landing at 44%. That is the worst score the government has received in over a year.
Strangely, another state-run agency, VTsIOM, claimed that Putin’s ratings actually went up during the exact same week. They reported that trust in the president rose to nearly 77%, showing just how divided the data can be.
Sources: FOM, The Bell, VTsIOM
