Duterte's Daughter Sara To Run For Philippines Vice President

Sara Duterte, the daughter of outgoing Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, will run for vice president in the 2022 elections, the government's election monitor said Saturday, after months of speculation she would seek the top job

Manila, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Nov, 2021 ) :Sara Duterte, the daughter of outgoing Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, will run for vice president in the 2022 elections, the government's election monitor said Saturday, after months of speculation she would seek the top job.

The Davao City mayor had been widely expected to contest the presidency in a bid to succeed her father, who is constitutionally barred from seeking a second six-year term and is facing an investigation by the International Criminal Court into his deadly drug war.

Her tilt for the country's second-highest office was immediately endorsed by the party of presidential front-runner Ferdinand Marcos Jr, the son and namesake of the former dictator, to be his running mate in the poll.

Sara's decision came just before the November 15 deadline for candidates to make a late entry into the May elections.

"This is to confirm that Mayor Inday Sara Duterte through her representative, has filed her Certificate of Candidacy for Vice President under Lakas-CMD (party)," her spokeswoman Christina Garcia Frasco said on Facebook, confirming the Commission on Elections' announcement.

For months, Sara, 43, had insisted she wanted to serve another term as mayor in the family's southern bailiwick -- the position her father held before he was elected president in 2016 -- despite leading in surveys of voter preferences for the next president.

Speculation about her plans intensified this week after she suddenly withdrew from the mayoral contest. She quit her regional party and joined Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats, the national political party of her close ally and former president Gloria Arroyo.

"I thank my supporters. I hope whatever happens in the next few days, I will be able to give them what they want," she told reporters Thursday on the sidelines of a wedding.

Sara's decision to run for vice president leaves Marcos Jr in a strong position in the presidential race.

Popularly known as Bongbong, Marcos Jr has been in the second spot in voter polls, ahead of celebrity mayor Francisco Domagoso, boxing great Manny Pacquiao and incumbent Vice President Leni Robredo.

In the Philippines, the president and vice president are elected separately.

There was speculation Sara had sought to persuade Marcos Jr to slide back into the vice presidential race, as the two clans sought to form a formidable alliance.

The Marcos family stronghold stretches across the country's north and centre, while the Dutertes enjoy widespread support in the south.

But Marcos Jr, who was at the same wedding on Thursday and was seen walking arm-in-arm with Sara, told reporters, "I will continue with my plan. I entered this race to run for president".

Political analyst Richard Heydarian told AFP: "Duterte running for the vice presidency... more or less seals Bongbong Marcos' position as the top contender, the candidate to beat in these elections." - 'Maam please run for president' - One of the reasons analysts had expected Sara to run for president was to protect her father from criminal charges in the Philippines, and ICC prosecutors.

The elder Duterte previously said he would contest the vice presidency, before changing his mind and announcing plans to retire from politics.

The office of vice president holds little power.

But Heydarian said approval ratings for Sara and her father had slipped in recent months, with the momentum shifting "in favour of Marcos".

If she were to win the election, it would keep "a Duterte near the top and well positioned for a 2028 run," said Mark Thompson, political science professor and director of the Southeast Asia Research Centre at City University of Hong Kong.

Sara's decision sparked a mixed reaction from her fans, with some praising the move, while others expressed disappointment she would not seek the presidency.

"Maam please run for president, please do not abandon the legacy of your father," a supporter posted on Facebook.

Marcos Jr's presidential bid, meanwhile, already faces challenges.

Opponents have asked the Commission on Elections to disqualify him from the race over previous convictions for failing to file tax returns several decades ago.

If Marcos Jr were to win office, it would cap a remarkable political comeback since a popular uprising in 1986 toppled his father and chased the family into exile in the United States.