MANILA, Philippines - Vice President Jejomar Binay remained the top presidential contender for 2016 despite a five-percentage point drop in his rating in the latest Pulse Asia survey.
If the May 2016 elections were held during the survey period, Nov. 14 to 20, 26 percent of Filipinos would elect Binay as the next president, Pulse Asia said.
The Pulse Asia poll showed Binay’s rating dipping to 26 percent from 31 percent in September.
In second place is Sen. Grace Poe with 18 percent, up from 10 percent; followed by Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, 12 percent (from 11 percent).
Former President and incumbent Manila City Mayor Joseph Estrada was in fourth place, maintaining his 10 percent share of votes of 1,200 respondents. He is followed by Sen. Francis Escudero with seven percent.
Taking the sixth slot is Interior Secretary Mar Roxas with six percent, down from 13 percent in September.
Sen. Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. ranked seventh with four percent (the same as in September); followed by Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano with three percent (from one percent); former senator and Presidential Assistant for Rehabilitation and Recovery Panfilo Lacson, two percent (from one percent); and Senate President Franklin Drilon, two percent (from one percent).
Binay is the leading presidential candidate in the Visayas (28 percent) and the poorest Class E (30 percent), Pulse Asia said.
Almost the same voter preferences are obtained by Binay and Poe in Metro Manila (29 percent versus 19 percent), Mindanao (30 percent versus 19 percent) and Class D (26 percent versus 20 percent).
In the rest of Luzon, relatively the same levels of electoral support are enjoyed by Binay (22 percent), Poe (20 percent), Santiago (13 percent) and Escudero (10 percent).
In Class ABC, essentially the same double-digit voter preferences are recorded by Santiago (19 percent), Binay (17 percent), Poe (17 percent) and Roxas (10 percent).
VP race
Poe is still the top vice presidential bet for the May 2016 elections, scoring 33 percent, according to Pulse Asia.
She is followed by Escudero (20 percent) and Cayetano (13 percent).
Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV is tied with Marcos in the 4th slot with eight percent each; followed by Drilon with six percent; Sen. Ramon Revilla, Jr. with three percent; and Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo with one percent.
Poe is the leading choice for vice president in May 2016 among those in Metro Manila (41 percent), Mindanao (39 percent) and Class D (33 percent).
Basically the same voter preferences are obtained by Poe and Escudero in the rest of Luzon (29 percent versus 21 percent), the Visayas (26 percent versus 17 percent) and Class E (31 percent versus 19 percent).
While in Class ABC, Poe, Escudero and Cayetano registered virtually the same levels of support at 32 percent, 19 percent and 19 percent, respectively.
Senatoriables
Sharing the top spot in the senatorial survey are Sen. Vicente Sotto III (54.7 percent) and Lacson (52.9 percent). Both have a statistical ranking of 1st to 3rd places.
They are followed by Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization Francis Pangilinan (49.2 percent) who occupies 1st to 6th places.
Three probable senatorial bets are in 3rd to 8th places – former senator Juan Miguel Zubiri (45.5 percent), Sen. Ralph Recto (45.1 percent) and Drilon (44.9 percent).
With an overall voter preference of 42.9 percent, former senator Richard Gordon finds himself in 4th to 9th places. Close behind the latter is Marcos (40.5 percent), who is in 4th to 10th places.
Completing the list of probable winners are Sen. Sergio Osmeña III (37.8 percent, 7th to 12th places), former Akbayan party-list Rep. Risa Hontiveros (35.4 percent, 8th to 14th places), former senator Jamby Madrigal (34.9 percent, 9th to 14th places), Justice Secretary Leila de Lima (33.8 percent, 9th to 14th places), Sen. Teofisto Guingona III (31.8 pecrent, 10th to 15th places) and Taguig City Representative Lino Edgardo Cayetano (31.3 percent, 10th to 15th places).
Meanwhile, the camp of the Vice President welcomed the results of the latest Pulse Asia survey, even as it downplayed the drop in Binay’s rating.
The survey was conducted from Nov. 14 to 20, using face-to-face interviews of 1, 200 representative adults.