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MANILA, Philippines — Filipino college students are breaking away from national trends, backing alternative, opposition Senate bets who trail far behind administration allies and Duterte-aligned candidates in major surveys.
Former Sen. Bam Aquino emerged as the clear favorite among college students in the final pre-election poll of the Center for Students Initiatives (CSI), receiving support from 79.6% of respondents.
Aquino was preferred by eight in 10 college students nationwide, with his campaign centered on educational reform.
Following him is lawyer and labor leader Luke Espiritu, who ranked second with 70% saying they would vote for him. A member of the left-wing political party Partido Lakas ng Masa, he is running alongside Leody De Guzman in a bid to challenge political dynasties and push for genuine representation in the Senate.
Espiritu rose to prominence for his performances in the 2022 and 2025 senatorial debates, especially in face-offs with Sen. Bato dela Rosa and former Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez, where he was seen ready with a rebuttal and quick to defend his stance.
Rounding out the top three is former Sen. Kiko Pangilinan, Aquino’s partner in the “Kiko-Bam” ticket, with 69.75% of respondents backing his Senate bid. He centers his campaign on food security and investment in agricultural infrastructure.
Like Espiritu, De Guzman did not perform well in the pre-election surveys conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS), where he ranked around 30th to 35th with just 3% support.
However, in the student poll, he placed fifth, with nearly half of college students saying they would vote for him as one of their senators.
Another opposition candidate, former Commission on Audit Commissioner Heidi Mendoza, also secured a spot in the pre-election poll’s top 12, placing eighth with 38.95% of college students supporting her bid.
Makabayan in. Apart from them, four other left-leaning senatorial candidates, particularly from the Makabayan Coalition, also made it into the winning circle. These include:
- Danilo Ramos, peasant leader and chairperson of the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP)
- Rep. Arlene Brosas (Gabriela Women’s Party-List)
- Former Rep. Teddy Casiño (Bayan Muna Party-List)
- Rep. France Castro (ACT Teachers Party-List)
Ramos ranked sixth with 42.75%, followed by Brosas in seventh with 41.35%, Casiño in 11th with 25.8% and Castro in 12th with 24.45%.
How Alyansa and Duterte-aligned bets fared
Despite their dominance in national surveys, just three Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas candidates broke into the top 12 among college students.
Two of them, former Sen. Ping Lacson and Makati Mayor Abby Binay, have consistently polled well nationwide and continue to hold strong support among students. Lacson ranked ninth with 33.3%, while Binay secured fourth place with 51%.
The other, former Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos, had better numbers in the student poll than in the SWS survey, where he ranked 19th. For college students, he is the 10th most preferred senatorial candidate with 29.5% support.
Despite leading national surveys, Sen. Bong Go and Rep. Erwin Tulfo (ACT-CIS Party-List) did not make the top 12 in the pre-election student poll. Go and Tulfo placed 15th and 16th, with 19.45% and 18.5% support, respectively.
Sen. Bato dela Rosa, who ranked 6th in the SWS survey, only secured the 20th place in the student poll, garnering just 11.25% support from college students.
The president’s sister, Sen. Imee Marcos — who shifted from the Alyansa slate to aligning with Duterte-endorsed candidates — fared even worse in the CSI survey. She placed 31st with only 4% of college students saying they would vote for her.
Conducted online from April 11 to April 25, the student survey gathered responses from 2,000 college students across 32 private, state and local higher education institutions. A majority of participants were from low to middle-income households.
The midterm elections are scheduled for May 12, with around 68 million Filipinos expected to cast their votes.
