Putin’s Approval Rating Hits Four-Year Low Amid Economic Slump and Internet Ban

The Russian leader’s popularity dropped to 65.6% as the Kremlin enforces a “sovereign internet” crackdown and the national economy faces its first contraction since 2023. Make us preferred on Google Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied Russia’s President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with members of the government via videoconference in Moscow on April 23, 2026. (Photo by Alexander KAZAKOV / POOL / AFP) Content Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied Flip Make us preferred on Google Vladimir Putin’s approval rating among Russians has fallen to its lowest level since before the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, amid an economic slowdown and an unpopular crackdown on internet access. The Russian president’s rating dropped to a low of 65.6% last week, a decline of 4.5 points since the end of March, according to data from the state-owned Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM).  Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official . It means that the authoritarian leader’s rating is more than 12 points lower than it was in late December.   Ahead of the invasion in late February 2022, Putin’s approval figure stood at 64.3%. It quickly increased after the attack, as is often the case in periods of war.  The pace of Putin’s popularity drop over the last few weeks is reminiscent of 2018, when the Kremlin announced an increase in the retirement age, the Moscow Times reported. That summer, his rating fell by 19 points, from 81.5% in mid-May to 62.5% in early July.  Such ratings are high compared to political leaders in the West, and critics regularly question the reliability of such opinion polls, given the scale of state censorship in Russia. This year’s favorability decline coincides with the Kremlin’s crackdown on Russian cyberspace and the authorities’ bid to create a so-called “sovereign internet.”  In March, the Kremlin blocked the popular messaging app Telegram, along with several other platforms and services such as YouTube and Facebook, in an effort to encourage users to switch to its state-approved “super-app” Max, which critics fear could be used for surveillance.  Other Topics of Interest Massive Overnight Drone and Missile Attack Targets Ukraine Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia launched a large-scale combined attack early Saturday, using strike drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles fired from the Caspian Sea area. There have also been multiple reports of internet slowdowns and blackouts in several Russian cities, including Moscow, in recent weeks, causing widespread disruption to services like online banking and GPS navigation.   On Thursday, Putin commented on the disruptions for the first time, saying internet outages in Russia were being imposed for security reasons and to prevent “terrorist attacks,” Reuters reported.  Russia’s internet clampdown  is widely seen as way of tightening control over the information space to curb potential internal dissent.  Russia is also faced with  bleak economic prospects  following years of war in Ukraine and wide-ranging Western sanctions.  According to Rosstat, Russia’s statistics agency, the country’s economy slowed in early 2026 and contracted for the first time since 2023.   In January and February, Russia’s GDP was down 1.8% compared with the same period last year, a drop that experts say will be difficult to offset even with additional revenue from high oil prices.  Alongside the ongoing war, which is straining public finances, Russia is also facing labor shortages, while sanctions continue to weaken its trading power.