In a decisive move that signals the total collapse of the ruling political alliance, the Philippine House of Representatives has voted to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte for the second time.
With 257 out of 290 lawmakers voting in favor, the case now moves to the Senate for a trial that could disqualify the daughter of former President Rodrigo Duterte from holding public office.
The charges against the Vice President center on the alleged misuse of public funds and inflammatory threats she made against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his wife, and the former House speaker.
Duterte, who currently leads early presidential polling, has dismissed the proceedings as a politically motivated charade, labeling the case a 'scrap of paper' and refusing to participate in committee hearings. While the House has moved forward with the impeachment, the outcome in the Senate remains far from certain.
Unlike the House, which is heavily aligned with the incumbent, the 24-member Senate operates under a more complex set of shifting alliances and national political ambitions. This impeachment battle is the latest chapter in the unraveling of the 2022 landslide coalition between the Marcos and Duterte families.
Tensions reached a breaking point as the two factions pursued divergent agendas, culminating in Duterte’s public threats and the President’s decision to allow the International Criminal Court to pursue her father for his past anti-drug enforcement policies. As the legal battle heads to the Senate, the future of the Philippine presidency remains in flux.
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