Sorsogon Governor Chiz Escudero retained his No. 1 position among candidates vying for the 12 seats in the Senate, according to the latest voter preference survey conducted by Publicus Asia from March 30-April 6.
The latest Pahayag 2022 Senatorial Survey Series of Publicus Asia, which was released less than a month before the national elections, showed Escudero gaining almost one percentage point to 49.4% to maintain his lead over more than 60 other senatorial aspirants.
Escudero is the only incumbent governor running for senator.
Escudero, the only incumbent governor running for senator, has consistently topped the pollster’s surveys in the past.
According to Publicus Asia, there were 1,500 respondents to the pre-election opinion poll generated from the official data of the Commission on Elections.
A former senator for two consecutive terms, he has vowed prioritize measures to make the nation’s pandemic response more agile, empower and strengthen local government units, and ensure the judicious and prudent use of the annual budget to help transition the pandemic-weary economy to recovery, among others, if elected again.
Students from 36 colleges and universities across the country said they would vote for Escudero if elections were held at the time the campus senatorial mock polls were conducted.
Recently students from 36 colleges and universities across the country said they would vote for Escudero if elections were held at the time the campus senatorial mock polls were conducted, reinforcing his position as one of the youth’s top favorites to win the May 9 voting.
President Rodrigo Duterte’s endorsement of Escudero is also expected to further bolster his candidacy after the Chief Executive said the governor will play a big role in crafting key pieces of legislation and reforms at a time when the country is besieged with challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Duterte’s daughter, Davao City Mayor and vice-presidential candidate Sara Duterte-Carpio, is personally backing Escudero’s Senate comeback bid.
The tandems of Senator Ping Lacson and Senate President Tito Sotto, Vice President Leni Robredo and Senator Kiko Pangilinan, and Senator Manny Pacquiao and Rep. Lito Atienza have adopted Escudero in their senatorial slates.
Mayors from CALABARZON (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) and Eastern Samar, who belong to the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP), have likewise endorsed Escudero.
Several party-list groups are also supporting his Senate return bid, namely Ang Probinsyano, Ang Kabuhayan, Agimat, An Waray, ARISE, BHW, BTS, Kusog Bikolano, KAPUSO-PM, and Uswag Iloilo, as well as the 200,000-strong Federation of Free Farmers (FFF), one of the biggest non-government organizations in the country.
