The administration’s senatorial slate continues to dominate opposition candidates amid a highly-charged political environment, according to the latest Pulse Asia survey.
Released on Monday, the survey showed that ten out of twelve candidates from the Alyansa Para Sa Bagong Pilipinas senatorial slate are likely to secure seats if the 2025 midterm elections were held today.
Leading the race is ACT-CIS Party-List Representative Erwin Tulfo, who garnered support from 62.8% of respondents, making him the frontrunner.
Senator Christopher Go follows closely with 50.4%, placing him between second and third in the rankings, while former Senate President Vicente Sotto III, with 50.2%, holds a statistical position between second and fourth place.
Broadcaster Ben Tulfo emerges as a strong contender with 46.2%, positioning him within the third to eighth ranks. Sharing the fourth to eighth spots are Senator Pia Cayetano (46.1%) and Senator Ramon Revilla Jr. (46.0%).
Senator Imee Marcos (43.4%) and former Senator Panfilo Lacson (42.4%) both fall within the fourth to twelfth rankings.
Completing the probable list of winners are as follows: Willie Revillame with 41.9% (7th-13th place), Senator Ronald dela Rosa with 41.2% (7th-14th place), Makati City Mayor Abigail Binay with 41.1% (7th-14th place), former Senator Emmanuel Pacquiao with 40.6% (7th-14th place), Las Piñas Representative Camille Villar with 38.4% (9th-14th place), and Senator Manuel Lapid with 37.7% (10th-14th place).
Pulse Asia also reported that registered voters, on average, are selecting nine candidates, with a median of eleven, when listing their preferred senatorial bets for the May 2025 elections.
Only 50% of voters named a full slate of twelve candidates.
Meanwhile, AGRI Party-list Representative Manoy Wilbert Lee announced his withdrawal from the Senate race in the 2025 National and Local Elections.
In a statement on Monday, Lee cited insufficient machinery to mount a successful campaign as the reason for his decision to withdraw.
“In my travels around the country, I realized that my [political] machinery is insufficient to allow me to reach all our countrymen… so I can let them know my advocacies. It became clear to me that more time is needed to prepare for a successful campaign,” he wrote in Filipino.
Furthermore, the Pulse Asia survey also showed that only 12 party-list groups are likely to secure representation in the House of Representatives out of the 155 vying for congressional seats in the May elections.
Under the Party-List System Act (Republic Act No. 7941), a party-list group must earn at least 2% of the total votes to secure one congressional seat.
Those exceeding this threshold may qualify for additional seats, with a maximum of three per group.
Leading the race is ACT-CIS, with a 7.96% voter preference, followed closely by 4Ps (7.42%), Tingog (6.29%), Uswag Ilonggo (4.83%), and Senior Citizens (4.44%). These five groups are on track to secure the maximum three-seat allocation in the House according to the party-list system act.
Seven other party-list groups are poised to win two seats each: Ako Bicol (3.32%), PPP (2.52%), Malasakit@Bayanihan (2.46%), Asenso Pinoy (2.44%), Duterte Youth (2.38%), Agimat (2.06%), and Gabriela (2.06%).
Pulse Asia also reported that despite the number of party-list options available, 16% of registered voters expressed no preference for any group in the upcoming elections.
The Pulse Asia survey was conducted from January 18 to 25, 2025, through face-to-face interviews with 2,400 respondents nationwide.
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline “Marcos-backed senatorial bets rule latest Pulse Asia poll.”