Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte declared her 2028 presidential candidacy in a televised press conference in Manila on February 18, 2026. She accused President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of corruption and failing to honor campaign commitments, and apologized to the public for having previously allied with Marcos in the 2022 election, which they won in a landslide. She left without taking questions.
Duterte and Marcos were once close political allies who ran on a joint ticket. Their relationship deteriorated after she was assigned agriculture rather than her preferred defense portfolio, and after investigations were launched into her use of confidential funds. She resigned from the cabinet in 2025. The feud intensified when Marcos cooperated with the ICC's arrest of her father, Rodrigo Duterte, who was transferred to The Hague and faces a pre-trial hearing for crimes against humanity related to his anti-drug campaign, in which thousands were killed.
Sara Duterte faces significant legal obstacles to her candidacy. The House of Representatives had voted to impeach her, but the Supreme Court dismissed the case on procedural grounds. New impeachment complaints have since been filed, centered on alleged misuse of $10.3 million in confidential funds and a 2024 statement in which she threatened to have Marcos, his wife, and the House Speaker killed if she were assassinated. Criminal investigations are also underway.
The geopolitical stakes are substantial. Marcos has strengthened the U.S.-Philippines security alliance, deploying U.S. missile systems near Taiwan. Sara Duterte has signaled alignment with her father's more Beijing-friendly foreign policy approach, meaning the 2028 election could affect the U.S. strategic posture in the South China Sea region.
