Popularity of Putin in Russia is rolling downwards: his approval rating has dropped to 66%.
President of Russia Vladimir Putin / © Associated Press
Russian sociological services have recorded a sharp decline in the ratings of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The dictator’s approval rating has dropped by 5% in one week – this is the worst indicator since the autumn of 2022, when mobilization was announced in the aggressor country.
This was reported by the Russian opposition publication “Agentstvo”.
Putin’s Job Approval Rating
Putin’s job approval rating among Russians has plummeted by 5 percentage points over the week. Sociologists last recorded such a sharp decline in the autumn of 2022. This is evidenced by data from the “Public Opinion Foundation” (FOM), which cooperates with the Kremlin.
The state-run Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM) also continues to record a decrease in support for the Russian dictator. According to its data, Putin’s approval rating has been decreasing for the third consecutive week.
According to FOM data, 66% of respondents positively assessed the activities of the Kremlin leader in office. A week earlier, this figure was 71%. The latest figure is the lowest since the start of the full-scale war against Ukraine. At the same time, 16% of respondents negatively assessed Putin’s work – this is the maximum level since the invasion.
Level of Trust in Putin in Russia
The level of trust in the Russian president has also decreased, although less significantly – by 2 percentage points over the week. Currently, 67% of respondents trust Putin, while 20% stated they do not trust him. Both indicators have reached such values for the first time since the beginning of the full-scale war.
In addition, the proportion of Russians who positively assess the work of the Russian government has decreased by 4 percentage points. It stands at 41%, while 37% of respondents negatively assess the cabinet’s activities – 3 p.p. more than a week earlier. Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin’s job approval rating has also decreased by 3 p.p. and stands at 49%.
VTsIOM recorded a drop in Putin’s approval rating by 0.9 p.p. – to 65.1%. For comparison, in mid-June, this figure was 70.4%. The level of trust in the president decreased by 1.3 p.p. – to 71%, compared to 76.7% in mid-June. The dictator’s approval rating reached a new low since the beginning of the war, and the trust level equaled the previous minimum recorded in April amid internet blockages.
At the same time, VTsIOM recorded an increase in government approval rating – to 45.6% (+0.7 p.p.), as well as for Mishustin – to 47.3% (+3.5 p.p.).
As the publication writes, the moods of Russians are likely influenced by fuel problems and the general economic situation. For the second week in a row, the largest number of FOM respondents – 19% – named the fuel deficit as the main event of the week. The war in Ukraine (18%) and shelling of Russian territory (14%) took second and third places, respectively.
FOM research was conducted on July 10-12, and VTsIOM on July 6-12.
Incidentally, due to fears of asset nationalization, economic instability, and Putin’s demands to finance the war, Russian elites are massively withdrawing funds abroad. According to an ISW report and Bloomberg data, the dictator’s inner circle is redirecting capital into cryptocurrency, gold, and foreign real estate, trying to secure their assets from expropriation amid structural problems in the Russian economy.
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