Huge rallies fan surge in Robredo endorsers

Vice President Leni Robredo (File photo by GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

BORONGAN, Eastern Samar, Philippines — The surge of local endorsements for Vice President Leni Robredo even if she is not the front-runner in presidential surveys shows, among others, how “polarizing” Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s candidacy is, a political scientist said on Tuesday.

It was also a sign that they were taking note of Robredo’s impressive crowd turnouts at her rallies, said Dr. Jean Encinas Franco of the Department of Political Science at the University of the Philippines in Diliman. “Rallies are creating an impact [even if] people say that it is not as scientific as surveys,” Franco said. “Some leaders still think of rallies as some sort of signal about whom they should support.”

Although Robredo lags in preelection surveys, she and her running mate, Sen. Francis Pangilinan, have held well-attended rallies in key provinces, including areas considered bailiwicks of the Marcoses.

Several Robredo endorsers were her former colleagues in the House of Representatives, Franco said,

Eastern Samar Rep. Fe Abunda, sister of talk show host Boy Abunda, has also come out in support of Robredo, who got the backing of almost all congressmen, mayors, and governors in both Northern and Eastern Samar.

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