VICE PRESIDENT Sara Duterte will decide on a potential presidential run in the 2028 elections by December 2026, revealing that her supporters have given her a firm deadline.
Speaking to reporters on Saturday after a Thanksgiving mass at the Carmelite Church in Davao City, she recalled her previous decisions regarding political office.
“In 2019, when asked if I would run for senator, I said no. In 2022, when asked if I would run for president, I said early on, in January 2021, that I would make a decision, and I did say I would not run for president.”
Her eventual decision to run for vice president in 2022 was influenced by events after the filing deadline for candidacies.
Looking ahead to 2028, Duterte said, “My supporters have given me a deadline of December 2026. If I don’t make a decision by then, they will look for another presidential candidate for 2028. So, I still have more than a year to really sit down and list down the pros and cons, as I did in 2021 regarding running for president.”
The vice president’s statement suggests she intends to carefully weigh her options before committing to a 2028 presidential campaign, mirroring her approach in the lead-up to the 2022 elections.
The 2026 deadline indicates a strategic timeline for her supporters and political allies as they prepare for the next presidential race.
‘Bloodbath’
Meanwhile, Duterte egged on political opponents to follow through with the impeachment.
When asked about her expectations regarding the impeachment case, Duterte said, “I have no expectations of acquittal or a verdict. I have accepted whatever the verdict will be, whether guilty or acquittal. I am already at peace.”
She also addressed the public speculation about how senators might vote. “I don’t know how the senators will vote if there is a trial. I think it is wrong to start counting votes now because they haven’t seen the evidence yet.”
“They haven’t seen what the prosecutors have, they haven’t seen what the defense is. So, it seems wrong to count votes without a trial. But the public is doing it, so I accept whatever the ending of the impeachment will be,” she added.
Regarding her legal team’s preparations, she said, “The lawyers are okay. They are in full throttle with their preparations for the impeachment. And of course, as lawyers, they would not want a trial. We know how lawyers operate. They know many legal resources for their clients. But I have told them, really, I truly want a trial because I want a bloodbath.”
In December 2024, four impeachment complaints were formally filed against Sara Duterte, the vice president of the Philippines, serving under President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr.
The House of Representatives approved the Articles of Impeachment on Feb. 5, 2025, paving the way for a trial to proceed in the Senate.
