Screenshot from Google Trends
MANILA, Philippines - After initial results from the Philippine midterm elections showed President Rodrigo Duterte’s allies dominated the senatorial race, Google searches for "migration" and "migrate" spiked dramatically.The spike occurred a little after 6pm Manila time, around the same time the first batch of unofficial results—less than one percent of all total votes at the time—were provided to the public. The results almost exactly mirrored pre-election surveys, showing Duterte’s endorsed candidates winning most of the 12 senatorial seats up for grabs.
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But not everyone thought it was a solution to even consider.
Duterte won the presidency three years ago on a populist platform, elected into power by 16 million Filipinos – about a third of the total 54.6 million voters who cast their ballots in 2016. Since Duterte’s election however, his controversial policies have polarized Filipinos such as his war against drugs and foreign policy shift towards China.Despite this, Duterte remains wildly popular, enjoying a satisfaction rating of 79% as of last month – his highest since becoming President. The victory of his endorsed candidates is further evidence of his enduring popularity, and will likely mean a continuation of his divisive policies.