Sara Duterte Leads Presidential Preference Polls Ahead of 2028 Elections

Vice President Sara Duterte is the preferred presidential candidate of nearly half of Filipino voters, according to the latest Pulse Asia survey. Conducted from June 28 to July 3 and on July 6, the survey indicated that 49 percent of respondents would vote for Duterte if the May 2028 elections were held at the time. Duterte is currently facing an impeachment trial in the Senate. Her support was highest in Mindanao at 87 percent, followed by the Visayas at 53 percent, Metro Manila at 39 percent, and Luzon outside Metro Manila at 31 percent. By socioeconomic class, she garnered 59 percent support in Class E, 48 percent in Class D, and 46 percent in Class ABC. Following Duterte were former Vice President Leni Robredo at 26 percent, and Sen. Raffy Tulfo at 14 percent. Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon and Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong each received 1 percent, with MMDA General Manager Nicolas Torre III at 0.1 percent. Robredo's support was strongest in Metro Manila at 38 percent. For the vice presidential race, Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go emerged as the top choice with 27 percent. Sen. Robinhood Padilla followed with 21 percent, while Sen. Bam Aquino and former Sen. Grace Poe both garnered 14 percent. Sen. Erwin Tulfo received 9 percent. Support for Go was highest in Mindanao at 47 percent, followed by the Visayas at 30 percent, Metro Manila at 21 percent, and Luzon outside Metro Manila at 17 percent. Class-wise, support for him was highest in Class ABC at 31 percent, followed by Class E at 27 percent and Class D at 26 percent. The survey also identified potential senatorial winners, with 17 out of 53 candidates having a statistical chance of winning if the May 2028 polls were conducted during the survey period. These include Sen. Padilla (48.4 percent, ranked first to second place); Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto (47.9 percent, first to third place); Sen. Raffy Tulfo (43.9 percent, second to fifth place); Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano (43.2 percent, third to fifth place); Sen. Loren Legarda (40.3 percent, third to fifth place); former Sen. Manny Pacquiao (35.6 percent, sixth to seventh place); Makati Mayor Nancy Binay (32.4 percent, sixth to seventh place); Education Secretary Sonny Angara (27.2 percent, eighth to ninth place); Sen. Mark Villar (26.1 percent, eighth to ninth place), journalist Ben Tulfo (20.7 percent, 10th to 12th place); Sen. Jinggoy Estrada (19.5 percent, 10th to 17th place); TV host Willie Revillame (19 percent, 10th to 17th place); Sen. Francis Escudero (17.2 percent, 11th to 19th place); former Rep. Mike Defensor (17.1 percent, 11th to 20th place); former Rep. Mar Roxas (17.1 percent, 11th to 20th place); former Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos (17 percent, 11th to 20th place); and Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority official Mark Lapid (16.9 percent, 11th to 21st place). The survey involved face-to-face interviews with 2,400 adults, with error margins of plus-or-minus 2 percent and plus-or-minus 4 percent for Metro Manila, Luzon outside Metro Manila, the Visayas and Mindanao at a 95 percent confidence level.