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MANILA, Philippines – The late dictator’s son Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr and his running mate, presidential daughter Sara Duterte, maintained their leads over their closest rivals, according to a February 2022 poll by Pulse Asia. 

The results of the survey, conducted from February 18 to 23, were released only on Monday, March 14, or more than two weeks after the survey was conducted. 

It’s a period that covers the dismissal of disqualification petitions against Marcos Jr, and the controversy surrounding the seeming delay in the release of the Commission on Elections’ results on the decision. Pulse Asia also noted that the survey period covered Marcos Jr’s participation in a presidential forum hosted by a company whose doomsday preacher-owner had earlier endorsed him. It is, thus far, the only presidential debate or forum Marcos Jr has participated in. He has shunned a Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas-sponsored forum and a debate sponsored by CNN Philippines, to name a few. 

Marcos Jr’s number remained unchanged between February 2022 and January 2022, when the survey was last held. Nationwide, 60% of respondents said they would vote for the former Ilocos Norte governor. 

Vice President Leni Robredo, who defeated Marcos Jr in 2016, was a distant second with 15% of respondents saying they would pick the lone woman in the presidential race. The February 2022 figure is one percentage point down from her January 2022 numbers, although it’s within the + or – 2% error margin of the survey for national results. 

Pulse Asia said they surveyed 2,400 registered voters in the survey. 

The “Uniteam” tandem saw huge jumps in Metro Manila, the country’s capital and most vote-rich region. Marcos Jr went from 57% preference in January 2022 to 66% preference in February 2022, a 9-percentage point leap. Duterte, meanwhile, saw her NCR numbers rise from 40% in January 2022 to 48% in February 2022, an 8-percentage point jump. The error margin for subnational estimates is at + or – 4%. 

Both Marcos Jr and Duterte dominate in all subnational divisions – NCR, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. They are also the top choice across all socio-economic classes (C, D, and E) covered by the survey. 

Only 4% of respondents surveyed did not give an answer because they either didn’t know who to choose, refused to answer, or had no choice at all. 

Trailing Marcos Jr and Robredo was Manila Mayor Isko Moreno (10%), Senator Manny Pacquiao (8%), and Senator Ping Lacson (2%). Presidential hopefuls Faisal Mangondato, Leody de Guzman, Jose Montemayor, Ernie Abella, and Norbeto Gonzales all posted numbers lower than 0.5%

Moreno was also top second choice presidential candidate with 26% of respondents saying they’d choose the Manila mayor if their first choice for candidate did not continue their candidacy. 

Senate President Vicente Sotto, who trails Duterte, saw a 5-percentage point drop in his numbers, with only 24% of respondents choosing him in the February 2022 survey. Sotto saw his numbers drop across all areas, save for Mindanao where he kept his 9% preference. 

Robredo’s running mate Senator Kiko Panglinan was third (11%), while fellow vice presidential aspirants Willie Ong got 6% while Buhay Representative Lito Atienza got 1%. Vice presidential hopefuls Manny Lopez, Carlos Srapio, and Rizalito David all registered 0.1% or below in the Pulse Asia survey. 

In a statement, Marcos spokesman Vic Rodriguez said the February survey “has again debunked the fake narrative being forced by some small segment of our society on the current sentiments” of Filipinos on the May 9 elections.

“While some of them may claim that they are winning in ‘Twitter’ and ‘Google’ searches, frontrunner Bongbong Marcos is winning the battle with the Filipino people,” he added.

The pre-election Pulse Asia survey was the pollster’s own undertaking and was not commissioned by any particular party. 

Other national or international news events the survey covered included the further lifting of COVID-19 mobility restrictions, the controversial “Oplan Baklas,” the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s partial report on the Pharmally controversy, and a move by jeepney drivers and operators to increase the minimum fare due to rising oil prices. – Rappler.com