Vice President Sara Duterte has announced that she will run for president in 2028, even as she faces renewed complaints for her impeachment.
At a press conference on Wednesday, February 18, Duterte said, “Humihingi ako ng paumanhin. Patawad kung tinulungan kong mahalal si [President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.] bilang pangulo ng ating bansa.” The vice president noticeably refrained from referring to Marcos, her running mate in the 2022 elections, as the president, and avoided addressing the controversy surrounding her office’s confidential funds as she apologized for the Marcos administration’s shortcomings.
“I offer my life, my strength, and my future in the service of our nation,” she said. “Ako si Sara Duterte, tatakbo bilang pangulo ng Pilipinas.”
In her statement, Duterte also said that she had anticipated her impeachment as early as 2023, when questions regarding her use of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) confidential funds arose. “Dahil hindi ko kinaya maging bahagi ng 2025 National Budget na tadtad ng katiwalian, pinili kong umalis sa gabinete kahit alam ko na mula pa noong 2023 na ang magiging kapalit ay ang aking impeachment.”
Duterte currently faces three impeachment complaints. The first two were filed on February 2, just days before the ban on complaints against her was lifted on February 6. The complaints were filed by progressive groups and the pro-democracy coalition Tindig Pilipinas. On February 9, a group of church leaders and lawyers filed a third impeachment complaint against Duterte.
All complaints cite her alleged misuse of confidential funds given to the Office of the Vice President and the DepEd during her term as education secretary. She is accused of betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption, gross incompetence and abuse of power, and participating in efforts to destabilize the government through death threats she made against Marcos in 2024.
Show of Strength?
Impeachment rules laid out by the 1987 Constitution do not bar officials with pending cases from running for public office. This means that Duterte is within her rights to make a presidential bid. However, if the case reaches the Senate and the impeachment court rules against Duterte, she will be barred from running for public office.
In Congress, steps will still be taken to process the impeachment complaints against the vice president. On Monday, February 16, ACT Teachers Representative Antonio Tinio told reporters that the complaints against Duterte are expected to be included in the House of Representatives’ Order of Business on Wednesday, during which the complaints may be referred to the House Committee on Justice. Tinio also said that, unlike 2025’s case, there is currently no effort to acquire a majority vote to fast-track her impeachment in Congress.
In addition to the impeachment complaints, Duterte’s announcement also comes amid developments in her father’s crimes against humanity case at the International Criminal Court (ICC). In January, the ICC ruled that former President Rodrigo Duterte is fit to stand trial, rejecting his camp’s request to postpone proceedings indefinitely.
The Davao City mayor is set to appear before the Pre-Trial Chamber for a confirmation of charges hearing, which was initially set for September 2025 but was delayed due to assertions from the Duterte camp that his health was declining. On February 13, the ICC also released documents naming Senators Christopher “Bong” Go and Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa as co-perpetrators in the war on drugs.
