Grace tops Pulse Asia poll

MANILA, Philippines - Sen. Grace Poe has regained the solo lead in the latest Pulse Asia survey on presidential preference commissioned by ABS-CBN.

The poll, taken from March 15 to 20, showed Poe leading the race with 28 percent, up from 26 percent in the March 8 to 13 survey of Pulse Asia, which was also commissioned by ABS-CBN.

Statistically tied for second are PDP-Laban candidate Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, who received 24 percent (from 25 percent), and United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) standard-bearer Vice President Jejomar Binay, who obtained 23 percent (from 22 percent).

Liberal Party (LP) bet Manuel Roxas II came in third with 19 percent (from 20 percent) while People’s Reform Party candidate Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago was a distant fourth with two percent (from three percent).

Pulse Asia’s March 15 to 20 poll interviewed 4,000 registered voters with biometrics nationwide. It has an error margin of plus or minus 1.5 percent.

Duterte was statistically tied with Poe in the March 8-13 Pulse Asia survey.

Tied in MM

Poe and Duterte were statistically tied for the top spot in Metro Manila, after garnering 31 percent and 30 percent, respectively, Pulse Asia said.

The National Capital Region has 6.2 million registered voters.

Poe also topped the presidential race in the rest of Luzon with 35 percent, while Roxas was the top choice in the Visayas with 37 percent. Duterte led Mindanao with 43 percent.

Poe and Duterte were also the most preferred bets by class D or the masa, obtaining 27 percent and 25 percent, respectively.

They were also tied for first place among class ABC voters with 30 percent and 32 percent, respectively.

Support for Poe among ABC significantly rose from just 22 percent in the March 8 to 13 poll.

Among class E, Poe (30 percent) and Binay (28 percent) were the most favored candidates.

Poe is second choice

As in the previous surveys, Poe is likely to benefit the most if any of the other presidential candidates back out from the presidential race.

The poll showed that 39 percent would vote for Poe if Binay would opt not to run. She would also get the same percentage of votes if Roxas would no longer pursue his candidacy.

If Duterte would not purse his bid, 33 percent of his votes would go to Poe. Twenty eight percent of Santiago’s votes would pick Poe if Santiago quits.

If Poe abandoned her presidential ambition, most of her votes (25 percent) would go to Binay, 22 percent to Roxas and 20 percent to Duterte.

Twelve percent of those voters said they would no longer vote for a presidential candidate.

Among Roxas’ supporters, 18 percent would not support another candidate should he decide not to run.

Still a tie

Meanwhile, Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Sen. Francis Escudero remained tied for first place in the vice presidential race with 25 percent each. Marcos’ score was unchanged from the March 8 to 13 poll, while Escudero’s rating went up a point.

Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo of the administration party was at second place with 21 percent (from 20 percent), followed by Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano with 14 percent (from 13 percent).

UNA’s Sen. Gregorio Honasan was now in fifth place with five percent (unchanged), dislodging Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, who got four percent, at fifth place. Trillanes suffered a two-point drop from the March 8 to 13 poll.

Marcos was the top choice in Metro Manila with 43 percent, while Robredo led in the Visayas with 34 percent.

Marcos and Escudero were tied for the first spot in the rest of Luzon with 32 percent and 29 percent, respectively.

Cayetano, runningmate of Duterte, topped Mindanao with 28 percent.

Senatorial race

Meanwhile, the LP continued to dominate the senatorial race with seven of its candidates likely to make it to the Magic 12 if elections were held during the survey period.

The LP bets who have a winning chance are Senate President Franklin Drilon (51 percent), former senators Francis Pangilinan (47.6 percent) and Panfilo Lacson (45.2 percent), former Akbayan lawmaker Risa Hontiveros (34.3 percent), former Technical Education and Skills Development Authority head Joel Villanueva (34 percent), former justice secretary Leila de Lima (33.8 percent) and Sen. Ralph Recto (32.8 percent).

Sen. Vicente Sotto III (53.6 percent), who belongs to Poe’s ticket, shared the lead with Drilon.

Also included in the winning circle were former senators Juan Miguel Zubiri (40 percent) and Richard Gordon (36 percent), world boxing icon and Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao (35.7 percent) and Sen. Sergio Osmeña III (34.2 percent).   – With Christina Mendez, Paolo Romero, Janvic Mateo, Perseus Echeminada