MANILA, Philippines – While Ferdinand Marcos Jr. remains the top pick across all age groups in Pulse Asia’s March voter preference survey, Vice President Leni Robredo saw a significant increase in support among the country’s youngest and oldest voters.

The poll, conducted from March 17 to 21, showed a 16-point rise in voter preference for the Vice President among 18- to 24 year-olds, an age group known as Gen Z. She now has a 30% score among these voters, compared to only 14% a month ago.

Ferdinand Marcos Jr., meanwhile, suffered a big drop in support among Gen Z, the age group that gave him the highest preference rating just last month. From February’s 71%, the former senator and dictator’s son dropped to 57%.

More elderly voters are choosing Robredo as shown by the big 19-point rise in her rating among the 65 and up age group. Given the 14-point drop suffered by Marcos in this same category and the largely unchanged figures for other candidates, it’s likely that support shifted to Robredo.

Robredo saw a rise in support across all ages, reflecting her 9-point surge in nationwide numbers.

• Ages 18 to 24: +16 (14% to 30%)
• Ages 25 to 34: +8 (10% to 18%)
• Ages 35 to 44: +5 (12% to 17%)
• Ages 45 to 54: +5 (17% to 22%)
• Ages 55 to 64: +10 (19% to 29%)
• Ages 65 and up: +19 (18% to 37%)

Her rosier numbers among young voters is a welcome development for her campaign team given the Commission on Elections’ estimate that 56% or more than half of the voting population are in the 18 to 41 age group. This makes the young a “prime mover” in this year’s high-stakes elections, said Comelec spokesman James Jimenez.

But it’s still an uphill battle for the Vice President given Marcos Jr.’ still dominant figures. Despite the drops, he still got a majority voter preference rating in all age groups, save for the oldest (65 and up) where he garnered a 41% rating. – Rappler.com