The press release was prepared by Anton Hrushetskyi, executive director of KIIS

In February 2024, we asked respondents to rate the level of democracy in Ukraine on a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 meant that Ukraine was a complete dictatorship and 10 meant that Ukraine was completely democratic (an answer of 5 meant that Ukraine was equally democratic and authoritarian).

The majority of Ukrainians - 57% - believe that Ukraine is rather or completely democratic (34% of them believe that it is almost or completely, and 23% believe that it is rather democratic). Instead, only 14% answered that Ukraine is somewhat or completely dictatorial. However, there are still 27% of respondents who believe that Ukraine is both a dictatorial and a democratic country at the same time.

Graph 1. How would you rate the level of democracy in Ukraine in general (not taking into account the temporary restrictions due to martial law)? Rate from 0 to 10, where 0 is "Ukraine is a complete dictatorship", 5 is "equal democracy and dictatorship" and 10 is "Ukraine is completly democratic".

In the graph below, the data are shown in a regional dimension. Although from the West to the East there are slightly fewer people who consider Ukraine a democracy, but in fact in all regions the majority is of the opinion that Ukraine maintains its democracy (and no more than 17% consider Ukraine a dictatorial country).

Graph2. Assessment of the level of democracy of Ukraine in the regional dimension

Another question is what is more important for the citizens themselves: that we have a strong leader (leaders) or that we have a democratic system? In July 2022, at the request of “Opora”, KIIS asked the question what is important for Ukraine "now" and 58% answered that "a strong leader is more important to Ukraine now than a democratic system", and 27% answered that the priority of a democratic system[3].

We asked a similar question in October 2020, but without the emphasis on "now", that is, we asked what should be the priority in general. At that time, 54% preferred a strong leader and 31% preferred a democratic system (which, respectively, is similar to the needs "now" according to the July 2022 survey). Instead, in December 2023, the majority of Ukrainians (59%) answered that a democratic system is more important to Ukraine. The share of those who believed that it is more important for Ukraine to have a strong leader - 32%.

Graph3. Now I will read out a pair of statements, and you tell me which of the statements you agree with to a greater extent.

            In all regions, there are more people who prefer a democratic system.

Graph4. Priority of a democratic system or a strong leader in the regional dimension

A. Hrushetskyi, comments on the survey results:

Building democracy in Ukraine is a long process in which all parties participate, from ordinary citizens to the highest officials. We can, of course, compare our democracy with that of the USA, but we must understand that even in the USA there was a long movement from the end of the 18th century until the 1960s, when the infamous laws that limited the rights of the black population were finally repealed (and even now are still a number of problems with the functioning of democracy). At the same time, you should not "calm" yourself with problems with democracy in other countries and thereby "justify" yourself and your problems.

Although Ukraine is not currently an established democracy, and its institutions are not functioning so well, objectively Ukraine is definitely on the way to this (perhaps with some setbacks, but the long-term trends are obvious). You can criticize ordinary Ukrainians for their political culture as much as you want, but in the last twenty years, Ukrainians have twice powerfully demonstrated their desire for democracy during the Orange Revolution and the Revolution of Dignity.

However, it should be taken into account that the public's perception of the importance and potential opportunities that democracy provides to the country is largely based on the actions of the parties involved. Stories of corruption, conflicts in the Verkhovna Rada, engaged journalism and destructive aggressive behavior of individual activists, etc. do not contribute to the support of democracy as a desired goal. An official or law enforcement officer who abuses authority to put pressure on journalists or public activists definitely increases the level of criticism among people towards the system as a whole. At the same time, a journalist or public anti-corruption fighter who conducts involved and/or simply incompetent investigations also ultimately creates an unfavorable perception of democracy in Ukraine.

Therefore, it is important to preserve the framework of constructive interaction between all parties. It is necessary to hear and understand the other side, interact with minimal conflict and look for optimal ways to solve urgent challenges. After all, it is necessary to learn civilized communication at all levels and work so that it becomes an integral element of the political culture of the modern Ukrainian nation.

Annex 1. Formulation of questions from the questionnaire

How would you rate the level of democracy in Ukraine in general (not taking into account the temporary restrictions due to martial law)? Rate from 0 to 10, where 0 is "Ukraine is a complete dictatorship", 5 is "equal democracy and dictatorship" and 10 is "Ukraine is completly democratic".

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We would also like to hear your thoughts on certain desirable aspects of Ukrainian society. Now I will read out a pair of statements, and you tell me which of the statements you agree with to a greater extent. RANDOMIZATION OF THE ORDER OF STATEMENT PAIRS AND STATEMENTS WITHIN PAIRS