Zelenskyy would lose in second round to Zaluzhnyi, Budanov, and Fedorov, - poll
If the Ukrainian presidential election were to take place in the second half of September 2026, Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Valerii Zaluzhnyi would receive the highest number of votes.
This is according to the results of a poll conducted between 16 and 21 September 2026 by the company ‘Sociopolis’, as reported by Censor.NET.
First round of the presidential election
As noted, 19.1 per cent of all respondents would vote for Zelenskyy, or 23.0 per cent of those who would take part in the vote and have made up their minds; for Zaluzhnyi, the figures are 19.0 per cent and 22.9 per cent respectively.
Next in the presidential rankings are Petro Poroshenko (8.9 per cent of all respondents and 10.7 per cent of those who would take part in the vote and have made up their minds), Kyrylo Budanov (7.9 per cent and 9.5 per cent respectively), Andrii Biletskyi (7.2 per cent and 8.7 per cent), Mykhailo Fedorov (6.3 per cent and 7.6 per cent) and Dmytro Razumkov (5.7 per cent and 6.9 per cent). Oleksandr Usyk would be supported by 2.7 per cent of all respondents and 3.2 per cent of those who would take part in the vote and have made up their minds, whilst Yulia Tymoshenko would receive 2.5 per cent and 3.0 per cent respectively. At the same time, 8.5 per cent of those surveyed were undecided about who they would vote for, 7.2 per cent would not take part in the vote, and 1.2 per cent would spoil their ballot paper.
Second round
The results of the simulation of the second round of the Ukrainian presidential election show significant differences in the level of support for candidates depending on the composition of the potential pair.
- In a Zaluzhnyi–Zelenskyy contest, 46.1 per cent of all respondents would vote for Zaluzhnyi, and 28.0 per cent for Zelenskyy. Among those who would take part in the vote and have made up their minds, the corresponding figures are 62.2 per cent and 37.8 per cent. 16.4 per cent of those surveyed would not take part in the vote, 4.8 per cent would spoil their ballot paper, and 4.7 per cent were undecided.
- In a head-to-head contest between Budanov and Zelenskyy, 35.6 per cent of all respondents would vote for Budanov and 26.9 per cent for Zelenskyy; amongst those who would take part in the vote and have made up their minds, the figures are 57.0 per cent and 43.0 per cent respectively. 24.8 per cent would not take part in the vote, 7.2 per cent would spoil their ballot paper, and 5.5 per cent were undecided.
- In a Budanov–Fedorov contest, 36.0 per cent of all respondents would vote for Budanov and 26.2 per cent for Fedorov; whilst among those who would take part in the vote and had made up their minds, the figures were 57.9 per cent and 42.1 per cent respectively. 23.9 per cent of respondents would not take part in the vote, 6.2 per cent would spoil their ballot paper, and 7.7 per cent were undecided.
- In the Budanov–Zaluzhnyi match-up, 29.4 per cent of all respondents would vote for Budanov and 43.6 per cent for Zaluzhnyi; whilst among those who would take part in the vote and had made up their minds, the figures were 40.3 per cent and 59.7 per cent respectively. 17.1 per cent of respondents would not take part in the vote, 4.6 per cent would spoil their ballot paper, and 5.3 per cent were undecided.
- In a head-to-head contest between Zelenskyy and Fedorov, 31.7 per cent of all those surveyed would vote for Zelenskyy and 33.6 per cent for Fedorov; whilst among those who would take part in the vote and had made up their minds, the figures were 48.5 per cent and 51.5 per cent respectively. 23.1 per cent of respondents would not take part in the vote, 7.0 per cent would spoil their ballot paper, and 4.6 per cent were undecided.
- In a head-to-head contest between Valerii Zaluzhnyi and Mykhailo Fedorov, 45.4 per cent of all those surveyed would vote for Valerii Zaluzhnyi and 24.4 per cent for Mykhailo Fedorov; whilst among those who would take part in the vote and had made up their minds, the figures were 65.0 per cent and 35.0 per cent respectively. 18.7 per cent of respondents would not take part in the vote, 4.8 per cent would spoil their ballot paper, and 6.8 per cent were undecided.
