Most Filipinos oppose detained senators joining Duterte impeachment trial

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

MANILA — Nearly 6 in 10 Filipinos say senators who are currently detained should not be allowed to take part in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial, according to a national survey released Monday by Momentum Research.

The firm’s inaugural National Momentum Survey found that 58% of Filipinos believe the Senate impeachment court should not allow detained senators to participate in the trial, while 38.1% said they should be allowed to serve as senator-judges. Another 3% were unsure and 0.9% declined to answer.

Opposition was even stronger toward senators evading arrest. Some 64% said a senator in hiding should not be permitted to sit as a senator-judge, compared with 31.3% who supported allowing it, 4.2% who were unsure, and 0.6% who refused to answer.

Political scientist Cleve V. Arguelles, Momentum Research’s founder and CEO, said the results point to a rare majority consensus on a politically divisive issue and suggest that many Filipinos expect their senator-judges to be credible.

“Given today’s deeply divided political landscape, majority public opinion on a contentious issue like impeachment is exceptionally rare. Across political divides, the public is expressing a common expectation that those who sit in judgment in an impeachment trial must themselves be beyond serious legal question,” he said in a statement.

“This is an important signal that the Senate as an Impeachment Court should not lightly disregard,” he added.

The findings come amid continuing public debate over whether senators facing criminal cases should be allowed to vote as senator-judges after the Senate impeachment court ruled that 16 votes are still needed to convict the vice president.

Mindanao respondents, at 51.5%, and Pro-Duterte respondents, at 57.3%, were the only two groups in which a majority favored allowing detained senators to participate. Even within these groups, about 4 in 10 were opposed.

Opposition to allowing detained senators was highest in the Rest of Luzon at 64.3%, followed by the Visayas at 62.3% and Metro Manila at 51.4%. Support stood at 32.7% in the Rest of Luzon, 30.4% in the Visayas, and 44.8% in Metro Manila.

By faction, opposition was highest among Pro-Opposition respondents at 73.5%, followed by Pro-Marcos respondents at 69.2% and Independents at 62.7%. Support registered at 24.9%, 30.2%, and 32% for the three groups, respectively, while Pro-Duterte respondents opposed at 40.2%.

Momentum Research defines Pro-Opposition respondents as Filipinos who align themselves with former Vice President Leni Robredo, Sen. Risa Hontiveros, Sen. Bam Aquino, and their allies.

On the question of senators in hiding, Mindanao respondents at 41.2% and Pro-Duterte respondents at 43.3% were again the most likely to favor participation, but majorities in both groups still opposed it, at 52.4% and 51.2%, respectively.

Regional opposition to allowing a senator in hiding followed the same pattern, with the Rest of Luzon highest at 71.6%, followed by the Visayas at 61.8% and Metro Manila at 61%. Support was recorded at 25% in the Rest of Luzon, 32.4% in the Visayas, and 33.9% in Metro Manila.

Across political factions, opposition was strongest among Pro-Opposition respondents at 89.8%, followed by Pro-Marcos respondents at 70.2% and Independents at 64.3%. Only 9.4% of Pro-Opposition respondents, 29.2% of Pro-Marcos respondents, and 30% of Independents said senators in hiding should be allowed to participate.

The survey was conducted while Sen. Rodante Marcoleta and Sen. Jinggoy Estrada remain detained at the New Quezon City Jail in Payatas over separate plunder charges.

Marcoleta’s case stems from a campaign donation he received while serving as a party-list lawmaker. Estrada is accused of receiving kickbacks from alleged anomalous flood control projects.

Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, meanwhile, has gone into hiding to evade a warrant of arrest issued by the International Criminal Court. He is alleged to have committed crimes against humanity of murder in connection with the Duterte administration’s war on drugs campaign, during which he served as the country’s police chief.

The non-commissioned survey was conducted from July 13 to 16 through face-to-face interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,438 Filipino adults. It carries a national margin of error of plus or minus 2.6% at a 95% confidence level.

Subnational margins of error are plus or minus 7% for the National Capital Region, plus or minus 4% for the Rest of Luzon covering North, South, and Central Luzon, plus or minus 6% for the Visayas, and plus or minus 5% for Mindanao, all at a 95% confidence level.

The National Momentum Survey is Momentum Research’s flagship initiative. Its inaugural July 2026 issue covers public opinion on government performance, the vice president’s impeachment trial, and the 2028 national elections.