SUPPORT for the government of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. fell to 18% in the third quarter, a pollster said on Sunday, as a widening flood control scandal continues to erode public confidence amid corruption allegations, governance lapses and political infighting.
In a statement, pollster Publicus Asia, Inc. said that support for the Marcos administration dropped from 21% in the second quarter of this year, as voters increasingly turned to opposition and independent politicians over lack of trust in the government.
More Filipinos warmed to opposition politicians, with neutral sentiment rising to 46% from 42%, while anti-opposition views fell to 29% from 40%, according to the survey.
“This shift reflects growing political moderation and voter fatigue with partisan conflict,” Publicus said. “The decline in hostility toward the opposition may be attributed to the fragmentation of opposition groups, the public’s focus on governance issues over political divisions and the rise of younger, centrist voices promoting pragmatic, solution-based politics.”
Corruption allegations are nothing new in the Philippines, but the flood control controversy has struck a chord with Filipinos due to the scale of the alleged fraud and the shock over how politicians and contractors colluded to siphon off billions of pesos from infrastructure projects widely seen as a necessity in the flood-prone country.
About 53% of Filipinos in Mindanao and 52% in the Visayas said they do not support the Marcos administration, according to the survey, showing simmering regional discontent and the sharpening of political divides amid the widening flood control controversy.
“Pro-administration support, however, remains strongest in North-Central Luzon (25%), the Marcos family’s bailiwick,” Publicus added. “The Visayas now emerges as a key battleground — leaning both anti-administration and pro-opposition — while the National Capital Region and South Luzon exhibit high neutrality.”
Dissatisfaction against the Marcos administration was highest among upper- and middle-income earners at 46%, as low-income households remained largely neutral, which the pollster attributed to “political disengagement or lack of perceived benefit” in the issue.
In terms of educational attainment, Publicus found graduates of vocational programs leaned towards neutral or opposition figures (45–58%), while those with no formal education were more likely to be anti-administration (46%).
Religion also emerged as a key factor in shaping sentiment, the pollster said, with most Catholics sharing anti-administration views (44%), while non-Catholics (40–48%) tended to lean nonpartisan, suggesting greater political caution.
“Government employees (40%) remain mostly pro-administration, whereas private-sector workers lean anti-administration (47%) and politically independent (40%),” it added. “Voters from OFW families (46–49%) tend to be more anti-establishment, both anti-administration and anti-opposition, reflecting global exposure and political awareness.”
Support for the Marcos administration fell to the second-lowest level in the July-to-September period, slightly above the 15% low recorded in the first quarter of 2025, when former President Rodrigo R. Duterte was arrested and flown to The Hague to face crimes against humanity charges over his bloody war on drugs.
“This period also marked the sharpest increase in anti-administration sentiment, which rose dramatically from 30% to 45% — reflecting growing public dissatisfaction and political polarization,” Publicus said. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio
