9 party-list groups garner at least 2% voter preference in Pulse Asia survey

Only nine out of 134 party-list groups accredited by the Commission on Elections have the nod of at least 2% of registered voters, according to the latest Pulse Asia survey conducted May 6 to 9.

These are:

• Anti-Crime and Terrorism Community Involvement and Support (ACT-CIS): 10.6%
• Ako Bicol Political Party: 6.72%
• Bayan Muna 6.07%
• Citizens' Battle Against Corruption: 3.68%
• One Patriotic Coalition of Marginalized Nationals: 3.50%
• Coalition of Associations of Senior Citizens in the Philippines: 2.77%
• Alyansa ng mga Mamamayang Probinsiyano: 2.72%
• An Waray: 2.43%
• Magkakasama sa Sakahan, Kaunlaran: 2.20%

Party-list groups who garner at least 2% of votes in the elections may obtain a seat in the Lower House during the first round of seat allocation, based on a Supreme Court resolution issued on Feb. 17, 2017.

Meanwhile, since a maximum of 59 seats have been allotted for party-list representatives according to the SC resolution, three groups may have three seats each in the House of Representatives based on survey results.

These groups are ACT-CIS, Ako Bicol Political Party, and Bayan Muna.

The survey was conducted through face-to-face interviews among 1,800 likely voters aged 18 years and above.

The survey has a ± 2.3% error margin at the 95% confidence level. For the geographic areas subnational estimates, error margins at the 95% confidence level are: ± 6.8% for Metro Manila, ± 3.5% for the rest of Luzon, ± 5.1% for Visayas, and ± 4.8% for Mindanao.

These were some of the developments that occurred in the weeks before and at the time the survey was conducted:

1. Peter Joemel Advincula held a press conference at the Integrated Bar of the Philippines headquarters, saying he is "Bikoy" in the "Ang Totoong Narcolist" videos
2. The Department of Justice filed a case of inciting to sedition against Rodel Jayme, the creator of the website used to upload the "Ang Totoong Narcolist" videos
3. President Rodrigo Duterte vetoed the P95.3 billion allotment for infrastructure projects in the General Appropriations act of 2019.
4. Duterte visited China from April 25-27 and bagged 19 deals with various Chinese companies
5. Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said China does not owe the Philippines for clams and corals in the West Philippine Sea; the Philippines asked China to keep away from Pag-asa Island
6. The Supreme Court issued a writ of kalakasan urging the Duterte administration to protect the marine environment in the West Philippine Sea
7. A magnitude 6.1 earthquake rocked Luzon, followed the next day by a magnitude 6.5 earthquake in Eastern Samar
8. Duterte urged Congress to pass legislation to protect workers' rights
9. The Metropolitan Manila Waterworks and Sewerage System slapped a P1.13-B fine on Manila Water for failure to provide consistent water supply to its customers
10. PAGASA warned that 16 provinces and Metro Manila will experience drought in May 2019 due to El Niño
11. The Bureau of Internal Revenue ran after more than 130,000 unregistered Chinese workers in the Philippine offshore gaming operations sector
12. Duterte was out of the public eye from April 29 to May 5
13. Eight explosions hit churches and hotels in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday
14. Fire struck Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris

—KG, GMA News