MANILA, Philippines (Edited 5:03 p.m.) — Defeated vice presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said Friday he will run in the 2022 elections.
Marcos said he will seek a national post in the next elections but he has not yet decided which position he will run for.
“My plan is I will be a candidate next election. For what? We’ll still have to decide. But I will not forget the advice of [former] Sen. Manny Villar after [he lost] the election: don’t make the same mistake I did of announcing my bid early,” the son of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. said in a mix of English and Filipino.
He added: “Whatever it is, I will enter a national campaign.”
Marcos is currently contesting his defeat in the 2016 national elections, accusing the camp of Vice President Leni Robredo of committing electoral fraud to secure her win.
Robredo beat Marcos by a slim margin of 263,473 votes during the 2016 elections.
In the report of the Presidential Electoral Tribunal promulgated in October 2019 showed Robredo widened her lead over Marcos by 15,093 votes after the recount, revision and re-appreciation of ballots from Camarines Sur, Iloilo and Negros Oriental.
Marcos asked the Supreme Court to “reconsider, review and re-examine” the recount results, while Robredo urged the tribunal to immediately dismiss the election petition filed by Marcos.
Marcos’ sister, Imee, is an incumbent senator. — Gaea Katreena Cabico