42% of respondents in Ukraine said that “the current authorities are thoroughly tainted, and none of their representatives should remain in power after the war.” This assessment reflects a high level of distrust in the country’s political system amid wartime conditions.
According to a survey by KIIS, Ukrainians view the work of the TCC and the practice of forced mobilization as one of the key indicators of the country’s democratic deficit. Overall, 35% of respondents believe the country lacks democracy. Another 36% say it has exactly as much as is acceptable under wartime conditions, while 16% are convinced that democratic mechanisms are, if anything, excessive. A further 14% of survey participants could not give an answer.
When asked about the reasons they believe democracy in the country has weakened, respondents most often cited a situation in which “you cannot criticize the authorities, information is being concealed, and freedom of speech is being restricted”—19% answered this way. Another 17% pointed to “the work of the TCC, mobilization”. For 16%, the central problem was that “the interests of ordinary people are not taken into account / they are not listened to, people are unprotected.” A further 15% spoke of lawlessness—violations of laws and the Constitution by the authorities, as well as abuse of power. The same share—15%—link the democratic deficit to “corruption, profiteering from the war”.