Duterte’s daughter Sara to run for Philippines vice presidency

The daughter of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has filed her candidacy for the vice presidency, her spokeswoman said, ending months of speculation about her 2022 election plans.

Sara Duterte-Carpio, 43, entered the vice presidential race by way of substitution after her political party’s original candidate withdrew, her spokeswoman, Mayor Christina Garcia- Frasco said in a statement on Saturday.

“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],” she said on Facebook.

Shortly after her candidacy papers were filed by a representative, the political party of Ferdinand Marcos Jr, the son and namesake of the late Philippine strongman who has registered to run for president, adopted Duterte-Carpio as its vice-presidential choice.

Garcia-Frasco said Duterte-Carpio would be releasing a statement shortly.

Duterte-Carpio’s decision to seek the country’s number two job came as a surprise as she has led opinion polls throughout this year as the preferred presidential candidate.

“It was a surprise,” Antonio La Vina, professor of law and politics at the Ateneo de Manila University told the Reuters news agency.

“Next surprise is VP for whom.”