PUBLIC net satisfaction in President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s government bounced back to neutral territory in June from a record low three months earlier, with satisfaction improving across most areas covered by the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.
In a non-commissioned survey conducted from June 20 to 29 and released on Wednesday, 42% of adult Filipinos said they were satisfied with the administration’s general performance, while 40% were dissatisfied and 17% were undecided. This yielded a net satisfaction rating of +1, which SWS classifies as neutral.
The latest rating marked a 14-point recovery from -13 in March, the lowest recorded for the Marcos administration and the weakest in 16 years, SWS said. It was, however, below the moderate +14 recorded in November 2025.
The improvement was broad-based, with net satisfaction rising in 12 of the 17 performance areas surveyed. Three areas declined, one remained broadly unchanged and one was tested for the first time.
“The Governance Report Card” showed very good ratings in four areas, good ratings in five, moderate ratings in three, neutral ratings in three and poor ratings in two, SWS said.
The government got its highest rating for providing basic education to children in public elementary and high schools, at a very good +68.
This was followed by improving the quality of children’s education at +58, helping the poor at +52 and creating policies that generate job opportunities at +51.
Satisfaction was rated good for developing science and technology (+49), implementing housing programs for the poor (+48), ensuring food security (+41), defending Philippine sovereignty in the South China Sea (+35) and ensuring an efficient public transportation system (+33).
Moderate ratings were recorded for ensuring that no family would go hungry (+26), preparing for climate change problems (+24) and taking care of Filipinos in Middle Eastern countries affected by war (+15).
The biggest improvement from March was in preventing hunger, with the net satisfaction rating rising 14 points to +26 .
The Marcos government remained neutral on fuel prices and public safety. Satisfaction with generating solutions for rising oil prices rose five points to zero, while satisfaction with ensuring oil companies did not take advantage of oil prices increased six points to -6.
Economic and anti-corruption measures remained the weakest areas. The administration received poor ratings for fighting inflation (-12) and eradicating graft and corruption in government (-14).
The survey was conducted as inflation remained elevated. June inflation slowed to 6.4% from 6.8% in May but accelerated sharply from 1.4% a year earlier. Inflation subsequently eased to 6.2% in July, although food and transport costs continued to exert pressure.
In his fifth State of the Nation Address last month, Mr. Marcos reaffirmed his commitment to investigating the flood control scandal, saying more than P800 million had been recovered and returned to the national treasury from pending cases since he began his crackdown on anomalous infrastructure projects.
Geographically, satisfaction improved in all four areas. The rest of Luzon posted the highest rating at moderate +13, up from neutral zero.
The Visayas gained 28 points to +5, while Metro Manila improved 12 points to -11 and Mindanao rose 10 points to -17. The latter two remained in poor territory.
Ratings also improved in both rural and urban areas, rising 18 points to +10 in rural areas and 11 points to -7 in urban areas.
Women’s satisfaction rose 21 points to +6, while men’s increased nine points to -3.
Among age groups, the biggest gain was recorded among Filipinos aged 18 to 24, whose rating jumped 30 points to +13. Those aged 55 and above gained 19 points to +17.
Satisfaction also improved across all education groups. Among college graduates, the rating rose 25 points to -10, although it remained poor.
SWS interviewed 1,200 adults nationwide for the survey, with 300 respondents each from Metro Manila, the rest of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao. It has a national sampling error margin of ±3 points. — Erika Mae P. Sinaking