Why the Honeymoon Is Over for Ukraine's Premier: QuickTake Q&A

Like all Ukrainian prime ministers, Volodymyr Hroisman got a one-year pass on opposition challenges to his rule when he was appointed. That shield is about to disappear. With a 1 percent approval rating, corruption still rampant, tensions rising in the conflict with Russian-backed insurgents and widespread unhappiness over increases in utility tariffs, the chances that Hroisman’s rivals will test him appear to be as high as his popularity is low. While it’s certainly possible he’ll cling to office, it’s less clear whether he -- or anyone else -- can overcome the political friction to meaningfully advance Ukraine’s pro-Western reforms.

Part of a much-maligned political class, Hroisman’s ratings aren’t much worse than those of his political patron, President Petro Poroshenko. But as head of the government, he’s taken the blame for many of the unpopular steps demanded by the IMF to make the budget more sustainable. While Ukrainians swallowed higher heating bills as part of the medicine needed to modernize the ex-Soviet economy, they’re less inclined to accept the failure to tackle corruption. Brought in by Poroshenko in April 2016 to end months of political turmoil, Hroisman’s term has done little to combat graft, the main reason his predecessor’s cabinet collapsed.