Pulse Asia: Escudero, Legarda top bets for VP

[informer]

Either Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero or Sen. Loren Legarda would be elected vice president if the May 2010 elections were held a year early, a Pulse Asia survey showed.

Asked to pick their vice presidential candidate from a list of personalities, 24 percent of the 1,200 adults interviewed from May 4 to 17 picked Escudero, while 21 percent chose Legarda.

The nationwide survey’s margin of error of plus-or-minus 3 percentage points put the two senators in a statistical tie. Not far behind was Vice President Noli de Castro at 17 percent.

Sen. Manuel “Mar” Roxas II was the top choice for senator, with nearly half of the respondents (49.5 percent) rooting for him.

Escudero was the preferred vice presidential candidate in Metro Manila (36 percent) and socioeconomic Classes A, B and C (30 percent).

It was a tossup for Escudero, Legarda and De Castro in the rest of Luzon and Classes D and E.

Even in the Visayas

The three politicians, along with Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay and Sen. Francis Pangilinan, registered practically the same percentages in the Visayas.

The Mindanao vote was scattered among Escudero, Legarda, De Castro and Pangilinan.

The margin of error for Metro Manila, the rest of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao is plus-or-minus 6 percentage points.

Aside from Escudero, Legarda and De Castro, the personalities on the list and their overall “vote” percentages were Binay (10 percent), Pangilinan (9 percent), Sen. Jinggoy Estrada (5 percent), Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. (4 percent), Sen. Richard Gordon (2 percent), Isabela Gov. Grace Padaca (1 percent) and Finance Secretary Margarito Teves (1 percent).

Six percent of the respondents did not choose anyone on the list.

Binay biggest gainer

Binay was the biggest gainer, improving by 4 percentage points from 6 percent in February to 10 percent in May. Other gainers were De Castro (3 points) and Pangilinan (1 point).

Those who slid were Estrada (3 points), Escudero (2 points), Legarda (1 point) and Revilla (1 point).

Pulse Asia also provided respondents with a list of 65 personalities from which they could pick their senatorial candidates.

Senatorial race

Following Roxas were Senators Estrada (46 percent), Pia Cayetano (43.5 percent), Miriam Defensor-Santiago (43.1 percent), Revilla (41.4 percent) and Jamby Madrigal (40.9 percent).

Completing the list of those with a statistical chance of winning if the senatorial elections were held today were former Senate President Franklin Drilon (38.7 percent) and National Economic and Development Authority Director General Ralph Recto (36.2 percent).

Lawyer Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III (31.9 percent), Binay (30.5 percent), Dangerous Drugs Board Chair Vicente Sotto III (29.8 percent), former Sen. Sergio Osmeña III (29.4 percent), Sen. Richard Gordon (25.4 percent) and Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile (25.1 percent).

Forty-eight percent of the respondents already had a full senatorial ticket in mind. Only 4.1 percent did not vote for anyone on the list.

Pulse Asia said no party singularly commissioned its latest survey.Cyril L. Bonabente, Inquirer Research