Bongbong may get 70%-80% of Mindanao votes – Sara
MANILA, Philippines — Presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. would likely get 70 percent to 80 percent (or about 8 million to 9.5 million) of voters in Mindanao, his running mate, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, predicted on Wednesday.
“Based on surveys that we have, both private and public, he is about 70-80 percent already here in Mindanao,” Duterte said as they campaigned in Carmen, Davao del Norte.
According to data of the Commission on Elections, there are a total of 15,659,149 registered voters in all the six administrative regions of Mindanao: Davao (3,236,251), Northern Mindanao (3,060,485), Soccsksargen (2,606,492), Bangsamoro (2,588,193), Zamboanga Peninsula (2,298,930) and Caraga (1,868,798).
If the voter turnout will be 76 percent, like in the 2019 elections, and Duterte’s figures are accurate, 70 percent to 80 percent would translate to 8.3 million to 9.5 million votes, excluding the votes from other parts the country and the 1.7 million Filipinos qualified to vote overseas.
Unfazed
In the 2016 elections, when he ran for vice president, Marcos got 14.1 million votes, only 300,000 less than the 14.4 million votes that elected Leni Robredo as vice president.
The Marcos-Duterte camp, dubbed UniTeam, insisted that they remained unfazed by a supposed tsunami of endorsements touted by the supporters of Robredo.
Duterte, who has also led all voter preference surveys since October, said she also remained confident that Marcos would win in the Davao region, her own turf.
“We will try our best to deliver for Bongbong Marcos in Davao Region and, based on our survey, he is doing well [but] we can do more for him,” said the mayor who has openly used her personal network and supporters to push for Marcos.
“The crowd understands the message very well, that’s the most important part,” Marcos himself said, reiterating his campaign message of national unity in his speech.
More important
Former Davao del Norte Gov. Anthony Del Rosario, secretary-general of Duterte’s Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP), said real voter support is more important than politicians’ endorsements.
“BBM (Bongbong Marcos) will still win as president. There is no difference there,” Del Rosario told reporters.
In Davao de Oro, Marcos and Duterte got the support of Gov. Jayvee Tyron Uy and Vice Gov. Maricar Zamora who both belong to HNP, and Rep. Manuel Zamora, who is the provincial chair of Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD).In a statement on Tuesday, House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez, president of the Lakas-CMD, said the endorsement of the Nacionalista Party would push the Marcos-Duterte team even further.
“The support of one of the country’s biggest and oldest political parties will certainly make a difference as we work hard to consolidate forces and support to the UniTeam tandem in this crucial period of the campaign,” Romualdez said.
“The endorsement of the [Manny] Villar-led party inches Marcos and Duterte further closer toward the post that they are seeking,” he added.
Aside from Lakas-CMD, President Duterte’s Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan and the National Unity Party had already endorsed the tandem.
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