Marcos allies gain early lead in Philippine Senate race amid voting machine controversy

In these midterm elections, held every three years, voters will choose 12 out of 24 senators, alongside 318 congressmen, 82 governors, 1,634 mayors, and more than 16,000 councillors.

Four days later, she announced her intention to run as an “independent” candidate, “to avoid putting my little brother in an awkward situation … or hurting my friends.”

Marcos Jnr appears to have strategically selected his candidates based on their popularity. Nine of his 12 candidates currently lead in the latest Pulse Asia survey, representing five parties within his coalition.