The Philippine Congress voted to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte for the second time. The Senate committee will now decide whether to remove her from office.
On 11 May 2026 GMT+7, the Philippine House of Representatives voted to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte for the second time, directly affecting her plans to run for president in 2028.
Monday's vote sent the impeachment process to the Senate for consideration. If found guilty, the daughter of former President Rodrigo Duterte will be barred from holding any political office.
The 47-year-old politician currently leads early polls seeking a successor to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., a former ally turned bitter rival.
The charges against the vice president stem from allegations of misusing public funds and intimidation targeting Marcos, his wife, and his cousin, the former Speaker of the House.
Sara Duterte was impeached on the same charges in 2025, but the Supreme Court halted the process due to technical errors before the Senate trial began.
The case was revived this year, and last week the House committee reviewing the evidence decided there was sufficient cause to file impeachment charges against her.
In an official statement, Duterte described the case as "a mere scrap of paper" and refused to participate in the committee's hearings, citing political motivations behind the actions.
After Monday's impeachment vote, Duterte's legal team stated, “The burden of legally proving the allegations now rests on the accusers to present evidence supporting their claims.”
Monday night’s impeachment vote reflected the level of support Marcos holds in the House, with 257 of 290 members present voting to impeach Duterte, surpassing the one-third threshold needed to initiate proceedings.
However, unlike the House, a conviction in the Senate is not guaranteed. If the trial proceeds and runs its course, the outcome remains uncertain.
Philippine politics, dominated by patronage and political clans, often sees House members—elected by local districts—tend to be more aligned with the sitting president compared to senators.
The 24 Philippine senators are nationally elected, and the Senate often serves as a barometer of popular support for those aspiring to run for president or vice president in the future.
In the 2025 midterm elections, where half the Senate seats were contested, candidates allied with Duterte outperformed those aligned with Marcos.
Nevertheless, the impeachment vote outcome is difficult to predict amid the country's multiparty system, where alliances frequently shift.
Follow international news:https://www.thairath.co.th/news/foreign
Source:bbc