The Philippines is set to hold congressional, provincial and local elections on May 13, midway through President Rodrigo Duterte’s six-year term. The polls are widely seen as a referendum on the controversial but still-popular Duterte, who has drawn international condemnation for his repressive tactics and his brutal war on drugs. The key battleground in next month’s elections is the 24-seat Senate, where Duterte-backed candidates are poised to win a majority of the 12 seats up for grabs. In an interview with WPR, Malcolm Cook, a senior fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, discusses the outlook for the elections, the beleaguered state of the country’s opposition and the long-term impacts of Duterte’s presidency.
World Politics Review: What are the stakes for President Duterte in the upcoming midterm elections?
Malcolm Cook: Duterte has two main political goals for next month’s midterms, and opinion polls strongly suggest that May 13 will be a very good day for him.