Marcos, Sara ratings down, but Marcos now beats VP

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte’s performance and trust ratings have significantly declined in the first survey conducted since the start of her impeachment trial on July 6.

The OCTA Research survey, conducted from July 4 to 11, also showed that President Marcos now enjoys higher performance and trust ratings than Duterte despite similar declines.

Marcos obtained a performance rating of 47 percent, down eight points from 55 percent in March, and a trust rating of 49 percent, down five points from 54 percent.

Those who were not satisfied with his performance increased from 26 percent to 33 percent, while his distrust rating increased from 30 percent to 32 percent.

OCTA’s second quarter survey had 1,200 respondents and a margin of error of plus/minus three percent.

The survey found that 45 percent of the respondents were satisfied with the performance of the Vice President, down five points from 50 percent in March 2026.

Those who were dissatisfied with her performance increased from 28 percent to 36 percent, while undecided respondents fell from 22 percent to 19 percent. OCTA said Duterte’s performance rating was her lowest since assuming the vice presidency in 2022. It surpassed her previous record-low 29 percent in November 2024.

Malacañang said the poll results reflect perception that Duterte is not contributing anything to efforts to address the country’s problems and is only engaging in mudslinging.

“Filipinos should see who is really working and who is not doing anything but discredit. The lower rating of VP Sara is a reflection of the truth that she is not helping the government solve issues like inflation and higher fuel prices. She only discredits but does not offer solutions,” Palace press officer Claire Castro said in a statement.

The drop was significant among respondents in Metro Manila (from 40 percent to 28 percent) and rest of Luzon (from 40 percent to 27 percent).

It went down by four points among respondents in the Visayas (from 62 percent to 58 percent), while it hardly moved in her bailiwick Mindanao (from 90 percent to 89 percent).

The Vice President’s trust ratings also suffered significantly, dropping by eight points from 55 percent in March to 47 percent this July.

Her distrust rating increased from 26 percent to 33 percent, while undecided respondents hardly moved from 19 percent to 20 percent.

“The Vice President’s decline warrants closer scrutiny than the topline numbers alone suggest. Her trust and performance ratings have fallen below majority level together for only the second time in the available series – the first being November 2024, when both stood at 49 percent,” OCTA said.

“The most direct explanation for this record decline is the impeachment trial itself… That her ratings crossed below majority in precisely the quarter this trial began, and by a wider margin than the previous such crossing in November 2024, makes the trial and its surrounding media environment the most direct and best-supported explanation among the factors considered here,” it added. — Alexis Romero