MANILA, Philippines – Vice President Sara Duterte maintains relatively stable approval and trust ratings, with approval increasing slightly to 29% from 28% in Q2 and trust rising to 27% from 26%. Despite these marginal gains, approximately five in 10 Filipinos remain dissatisfied with and distrustful of her performance.
Calamity Assistance, Public Visibility Boost Positive Assessments
Assistance provided by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) during calamities (12%), along with the Vice President’s perceived presence and visibility (9%), are among the leading factors positively influencing public assessments of her performance. These favorable perceptions are more pronounced in Mindanao (21%).
Meanwhile, the testimonies of three OVP and Department of Education (DepEd) officials linking Army Colonel Lachica to the use of confidential funds (8%) have also generated positive responses from some voters.
However, the same testimonies appear to generate more negative than positive assessments, with 13% citing a negative effect, indicating that the disclosures have intensified scrutiny of the use of confidential funds, particularly regarding whether the expenditures were adequately justified. The reported position of military officials that military certification alone is insufficient justification for the DepEd’s use of confidential funds (13%) has further contributed to these concerns.
The proposed 2027 OVP budget (14%) also appears to remain affected by the controversy surrounding its confidential funds. Despite being 11.7% lower than the 2026 allocation, the proposed budget continues to have a negative effect on some voters’ assessments of the Vice President.
Bravery Stands Out in VP Duterte’s Personality Profile
Beyond the factors influencing her performance ratings, bravery remains a distinctive personality trait associated with Vice President Duterte (40%), followed by concern for fellow countrymen (27%), love of country (25%), pro-poor (21%), and authenticity (21%).
In contrast, no prominent personality trait emerges for other top national officials. Nearly half of registered voters say they do not know or cannot identify a defining personality trait for these officials.
PQ3-2026 is an independent, non-commissioned nationwide purposive sampling survey conducted from October 1-4, 2026, comprising 1,581 respondents who are registered Filipino voters, randomly selected from the market research panel of PureSpectrum, a US-based panel marketplace with global operations and a regional office in Singapore. The national margin of error is +/- 3%.
PAHAYAG is a CSR of PUBLiCUS Asia Inc., which has tracked key metrics since 2017, while Vox Opinion Research is its commissioned research arm since 2013.