BLOC VOTE | INC usually picks frontrunner, but it’s not the most significant factor, says analyst

May 4, 2022 , 11:31 AM

(May 4, 2022) – Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) may be known for its bloc-voting practice but the support given by the religious group cannot be considered the “most significant factor” during the elections, a political analyst said on Tuesday.

Prof. Edmund Tayao, who heads the Local Government Development Foundation, said the votes from INC can help but they are not the barometer of a candidate’s chance of winning.

INC reportedly has 2.6 million members.

“I’m not inclined to think that the INC support is the most significant factor in defining the win of a candidate kasi hindi naman majority ng 65 million voters ‘yung INC members. Kahit pa Catholic voters, hindi mo masasabi ‘yan,” said Tayao on One News’ The Chiefs.

On Tuesday, INC officially endorsed former senator Bongbong Marcos Jr. and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio for the 2022 elections. They are running under different political parties but they joined forces as the standard-bearers of the UniTeam banner.

Political observers already expected this endorsement since INC also backed the late dictator’s son when he ran but lost for vice president in the 2016 elections. INC also vouched for President Rodrigo Duterte, the father of Marcos’ running mate, for the presidential race.

Tayao noted that the religious group tends to support those who are leading in surveys. Both Marcos and Duterte-Carpio have kept a commanding lead in surveys with more than 50%.

“Bloc voting is something that will help only in the last stretch because it will only add to the numbers that you already have,” said Tayao.

Since the 1998 elections, the presidential bets supported by INC eventually won. But some of the vice presidential candidates the group backed over the same period did not win, including Marcos.

For instance, INC endorsed the late former President Noynoy Aquino III and his running mate Mar Roxas in the 2010 elections. Roxas, however, was defeated by former Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay by more than 720,000 votes.

In 1992, INC backed businessman Danding Cojuangco Jr. who ran for president under the Nationalist People’s Coalition but he only finished third with 4.1 million votes. Fidel Ramos won the race with 5.3 million while the late former senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago followed suit with almost 4.5 million votes.

Dindo Manhit, a political analyst from ADR Stratbase Institute, agreed that the bloc-voting of INC could contribute when it comes to a tight race. He noted that the announcement came earlier than expected, possibly to give momentum to Marcos.

“If it’s a solid vote in a very tight race, that would be very positive kung sinuman ang kandidato, in this case, Marcos and Sara Duterte, makakatulong ito to concretize ‘yung suporta para sa tambalang UniTeam,” said Manhit on One PH’s Sa Totoo Lang.

(PM)

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