Breakdown of Люди считают этого человека хорошим мэром.
человек
person
этот
this [f: эта, n: это]
хороший
good
люди
people
Questions & Answers about Люди считают этого человека хорошим мэром.
Why is хорошим мэром in the Instrumental case rather than matching the Accusative of the direct object?
The verb считать (to consider) uses a specific grammatical pattern: it takes the person or thing being judged in the Accusative (этого человека), but what they are considered to be must go in the Instrumental case (хорошим мэром). This is the standard rule for verbs of considering, naming, and appointing.
Why does the Accusative direct object этого человека look like it is in the Genitive case?
Because человек (person) is an animate masculine noun. In Russian, the Accusative form for animate masculine nouns always copies the Genitive form. If this were an inanimate object, the Accusative would just look like the Nominative.
Could I add the word как (as) and say считают этого человека как хорошим мэром?
No, that sounds unnatural in Russian. Unlike English, which sometimes uses 'as' (to consider someone as something), Russian verbs of considering and appointing build this connection directly into the grammar by using the Instrumental case without any prepositions.
What is the perfective form of считать, and why isn't it used here?
The perfective form for holding an opinion is посчитать. We use the imperfective считать here because holding an opinion is a continuous, ongoing state for these people rather than a single, completed action.