PULSE ASIA SURVEY
By GISELLE OMBAY, GMA Integrated News
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s trust and performance ratings declined significantly in March, in contrast to that of Vice President Sara Duterte which saw an improvement, results of a recent survey by Pulse Asia showed.
Based on the findings of Pulse Asia’s March 2025 Ulat ng Bayan survey, Marcos’ approval rating fell by 17 percentage points from 42% in February to 25% in March.
His disapproval rating, on the other hand, soared by 21 points to 53%.
Marcos’ performance rating specifically decreased largely in the National Capital Region by 24 percentage points, followed by Balanced Luzon (-20), Mindanao (-14), and Visayas (-10).
In terms of socioeconomic classes, his public approval rating went down the most among Class D (-18), followed by Class E (-12), and then Class ABC (-9).
Majority of Filipinos or 54% also expressed distrust toward the President, up from the previous 32%. His trust rating likewise dropped significantly from 42% in February to 25% in March.
The decline in his trust rating was also the highest in NCR by 24 percentage points. Balanced Luzon came next with -22, then Mindanao with -13, and Visayas with -9.
His trust rating also fell the most among Class D (-18), followed by Class E (-10), and Class ABC (-8).
Duterte, meanwhile, was the only top government official in the country whose performance ratings got better, with her approval rating increasing from 52% to 59%; and her disapproval rating dipping from 26% to 16%.
The Vice President’s approval rating was highest in NCR (+22), followed by Visayas (+17), Balanced Luzon (+5), and Mindanao (+3). It also peaked among Class E (+13), Class ABS (+11), and Class D (+7).
Her trust score also climbed by 8 percentage points from 53% in February to 61% in March.
Duterte’s trust rating mostly improved in NCR (+23), followed by Visayas (+16), Balanced Luzon (+5), and Mindanao (+3).
Class ABC (+14) and Class E (+13) also showed more trust to her, as well as Class D with +7.
Escudero, Romualdez
Aside from the two top officials, the trust and performance ratings of Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero and Speaker Martin Romualdez also decreased over the same period.
Pulse Asia said Escudero's approval figure declined by 8 percentage points and his disapproval rating increased by 6 points.
The approval rating of Romualdez was unchanged but his disapproval rating climbed to 54% in March 2025, up 14 percentage points from February 2025.
Escudero also experienced a decline in his trust rating, from 47% in February 2025 to 38% in March 2025 while his distrust rating rose from 14% to 20%.
The poll firm said Romualdez was distrusted by a majority of Filipinos in March 2025 (57%) – increasing by 15 percentage points from 42% in February 2025.
The distrust was expressed mostly by people in Balanced Luzon (+17) and NCR (+16), followed by Visayas (+14) and Mindanao (+12).
GMA News Online reached out to the offices of the President, Vice President, Escudero, and Romualdez for comment on the matter.
In Emil Sumangil’s “24 Oras” report, Pulse Asia explained that the president's trust rating may have been pulled down by political turmoil and ineffective responses to important national concerns.
Meanwhile, the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte on March 11 may have contributed to the vice president's increased approval and trust rating.
The elder Duterte was arrested and brought to the International Criminal Court in The Hague to face trial for alleged crimes against humanity in his administration’s war on drugs.
The survey was conducted from March 23 to 29, 2025, and involved 2,400 adult Filipinos selected through multi-stage probability sampling. The respondents were also interviewed face-to-face.
It has an error margin of ±2% for the entire country; ±6 for NCR; ±5 for Visayas; and ±4% for Northern/ Central Luzon, Southern Luzon, and Mindanao, at the 95% confidence level. —with Mariel Celine Serquiña/AOL/VBL, GMA Integrated News
