The party of Ukraine's new President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who is Jewish, has strengthened its lead ahead of a parliamentary election due on July 21, an opinion poll showed on Wednesday.
The latest survey by Reiting research body showed the former television comedian's equally new party, Servant of the People, at 41.1%, up slightly from early June.
After taking office last month, Zelenskiy dismissed the parliament still dominated by loyalists of his defeated predecessor. Servant of the People has no lawmakers in the outgoing legislature and is campaigning on a pro-European and anti-corruption ticket.
The Reiting poll put Opposition Platform in second place at 9% and European Solidarity – the party of Zelenskiy's predecessor Petro Poroshenko – third at 6.8%.
A good showing next month would cement Zelenskiy's meteoric rise and upending of Ukrainian politics.
He grew to national fame playing the TV comedy role of a schoolteacher who unexpectedly becomes president after a pupil films him making a foul-mouthed tirade against corrupt politicians and posts the video online. His campaign exploited the parallels with that fictional narrative, portraying him as an everyman who would stand up to a crooked political class.
After taking the oath of office on May 20, Zelenskiy pledged to "protect the sovereignty and independence of Ukraine" evoking the defensive prowess of Israel.
"We must become Icelanders in soccer, Israelis in defending our land, Japanese in technology," he was quoted by the BBC as saying.
Ukraine's most pressing issue is the conflict with its neighbor Russia, which annexed its Crimea region in 2014. Zelenskiy has said his first task is to achieve a ceasefire.
