Sara Duterte's popularity slips after DepEd exit – SWS survey

MANILA, Philippines — While still fairly popular two years into her term, Vice President Sara Duterte's net satisfaction rating fell +44 in June, down from +63 in March, according to the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.

This is her lowest satisfaction rating so far since assuming the vice presidency.

The results came after Duterte left the Cabinet of her former ally, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. She began voicing policy disagreements with the Marcos administration especially in the fourth quarter of 2023.

The relationship quickly turned sour in the first quarter of 2024, culminating in Duterte's exit as education secretary on June 19, which was right before the SWS survey period of June 23 to July 1.

Despite the 19-point drop in her ratings, however, Duterte still enjoyed a "good" overall satisfaction rating, with 65% satisfied and 21% dissatisfied with her performance.

Regions. The SWS survey found that Duterte's ratings were highest in her home region of Mindanao, where she notched an "excellent" +73 net satisfaction score. She also posted "good" ratings in the Visayas (+47), Metro Manila (+32), and the rest of Luzon (+31).

Demographics. The vice president's popularity dipped across all major demographics but remained robust overall.

Her net satisfaction was "very good" among women (+50) and those with less formal education (+54 among non-elementary graduates). It was "good" among men (+37), urban residents (+42), and most age groups except those 55 and older, where it was "moderate" (+27).

Rural vs urban. Her ratings were slightly better in rural areas (+46) than in urban zones (+42), and are still considered "good." These scores, however, dropped from +68 or "very good" in rural areas in March and +58 or "very good" in urban areas.

Survey details. The survey conducted from June 23 to July 1 used face-to-face interviews of 1,500 nationally representative adults. The sampling error margins are ±2.5% for the national percentages, ±4.0% for Balance Luzon, and ±5.7% each for Metro Manila, Visayas and Mindanao, the SWS said.

Totals. Below are the net satisfaction ratings from SWS's latest survey.