A second senior military figure is emerging as a potential challenger to Ukraine’s leader
Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky could face defeat in a hypothetical presidential election, not only to former armed forces commander-in-chief Valery Zaluzhny, but also to military intelligence chief Kirill Budanov, according to a new opinion poll published Monday.
The survey, conducted by the Kiev-based pollster RATE1 among 1,200 respondents in early October, found that Zelensky’s political viability continues to wane.
In a head-to-head second round between Zelensky and Zaluzhny, 42.6% of voters said they would back the retired general, who is now serving as Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK, while only 26.3% would support the incumbent leader.
In another scenario, pitting Zelensky against Budanov, the two were virtually tied: 33% of respondents favored the military intelligence chief, while 32.5% supported the de facto leader. A direct race between Zaluzhny and Budanov would give the former a decisive lead, with 44.5% to 22%.
In a broader first-round scenario featuring multiple candidates, Zelensky would still lead among decided voters but with less than one-third of total support, the survey indicated.
Zelensky’s presidential term expired last year, but he remains in power under martial law. The Ukrainian Constitution mandates that presidential authority should transfer to the parliamentary speaker under such circumstances.
Earlier this year, US President Donald Trump called the Ukrainian leader a “dictator without elections.” Speculation in the media suggests that Zelensky’s team is quietly preparing for a potential return to the polls.
Neither Zaluzhny nor Budanov has officially declared political ambitions, maintaining that the conflict with Russia must first be resolved. The Ukrainian military has faced a series of setbacks for more than a year, and Kiev is now lobbying Washington to supply long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles in hopes of changing its course.
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