Duterte's popularity doesn't translate to anointed candidate's win –analyst

While President Rodrigo Duterte is still popular, a political analyst on Sunday said this factor will not ensure the victory of the candidate he endorses.

After conceding that Sara Duterte will not join the presidential race, the Chief Executive said Senator Bato dela Rosa's candidacy would be good because the latter was a "military man."

But Professor Maria Ela Atienza, who teaches at the University of the Philippines Political Science Department, said Duterte's recent satisfaction ratings have declined, as well as his government performance and media freedom ratings.

"While President Duterte remains popular now, his ratings have also gone down compared to before and public satisfaction ratings on government performance, including COVID-19 response and issues related to media freedom, have gone down. Popularity of an outgoing president does not necessarily translate to victory of the anointed candidate," said Atienza in an e-mailed interview with GMA News Online.

In a Social Weather Stations (SWS) poll, 45% of Filipinos believed that it is dangerous to print or broadcast anything that is against the Duterte administration.

Duterte's net satisfaction rating also dipped in May and June 2021 after reaching a record-high score during a pandemic-hit November 2020. Malacañang, however, had consistently denied that the press was under attack during the Duterte regime.

COVID-19 pandemic factor for voter's behavior

Apart from popularity, Atienza also said that the COVID-19 response, addressing the economy and unemployment would also influence how Filipinos will use their right to suffrage.

This as the economic impact of the 2020 pandemic led to a recession "comparable to the Marcos years," added Atienza.

"Based on SWS and Pulse Asia surveys on major issues or concerns of Filipinos, the economy, pandemic response, and graft and corruption issues in government, especially linked with the COVID-19 response, could also factor in voting behavior in 2022," she said.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. previously defended the coronavirus disease pandemic response of the Duterte administration after the Philippines ranked last among 121 countries. He said the Philippines was experiencing a surge amid the Delta variant while other countries' cases were going down. — DVM, GMA News