Sara Duterte remains on top in OCTA's latest VP survey

Despite a drop in ratings, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte remained on top in the latest survey on vice presidential candidates in the 2022 elections conducted by independent group OCTA Research.

According to the survey, Duterte got 43% preference votes, scoring 40% in the National Capital Region, 24% in Balance Luzon, 43% in Visayas, and 82% in Mindanao. She scored 50% in the OCTA survey conducted in December 2021.

The daughter of President Rodrigo Duterte was followed by Senate President Vicente Sotto III (33%), Senator Francis Pangilinan (10%), Dr. Willie Ong (7%), House Deputy Speaker Lito Atienza (1%), and Carlos Serapio (0.1%).

The survey was conducted from February 12 to 17, with a total of 1200 respondents nationwide. It has a margin of error of 3%.

Reacting to the results, Duterte said some politicians advised her not to "believe" in surveys. She said she wants to focus on campaigning to know the needs of the public.

Still, Duterte expressed gratitude to all her supporters.

"Okay, seasoned politicians advised me not to believe surveys dahil hindi naman lagi na 'yung nasa unahan ng survey sila 'yung nananalo... so dapat talaga tutukan 'yung kampanya, dapat talaga tutukan 'yung one-on-one sa mga tao, sa mga voters, and dapat masagot mo kung ano 'yung mga kailangan ng mga tao at kung ano 'yung kailangan nila sa iyo," Duterte said at a press conference in Davao City.

(Okay, seasoned politicians advised me not to believe surveys because not all who are leading end up winning. So we should focus on campaigning, we should focus on the public, the voters and we should address the needs of the public and what they need from you.)

"They are indicative of the trend but it doesn't necessarily mean na ikaw na 'yung panalo pero [you will win but] I would just like to thank all my friends around the country for their support sa akin [for me] and for my candidacy. They serve as an inspiration to go on and on sa campaign and make sure to cover everything doon sa [in our] campaign namin [for the voters] para sa ating mga botante," she added.

Duterte is the running mate of former senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., who also topped OCTA's survey on presidential candidates.

A survey on senatorial candidates, meanwhile, shows Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda topping the list. —KBK/RSJ, GMA News