MANILA, Philippines — Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio jumped ship to former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s Lakas-CMD for a potential run for a national office, party president and House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez said Friday.
“I’d like to tell you that she has joined Lakas-CMD for a possible run in the national arena of Philippine politics,” Romualdez said in a virtual press conference.
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He added that Duterte-Carpio’s decision on whether she will be running for president or vice president will likely be known over the weekend.
Duterte-Carpio took her oath as Lakas-CMD member before Romualdez on Thursday at the sidelines of the wedding of the daughter of party chairman Sen. Bong Revilla at his farm in Silang, Cavite.
Previously, the Davao City mayor was the chairperson of Hugpong ng Pagbabago, the regional party she founded in 2018 in support of her father, President Rodrigo Duterte.
Duterte-Carpio’s moving from a regional party to a national party sets the stage for a potential run for a national position by substituting for Lakas-CMD’s aspirants for the presidency or vice presidency.
A certain Anna Capella Velasco and another Lyle Fernando Uy filed their candidacies for president and vice president under Lakas-CMD, but the party’s secretary general, House Deputy Speaker Prospero Pichay, told ABS-CBN News that they were just placeholders.
Pichay later walked back on this statement.
If the party were to be followed, Romualdez said they want Duterte-Carpio to run for president, but he added that they would respect whatever her decision may be.
“We shall support her decision with the options that are before her,” he said. “The party is here to provide security, support and to provide as much positive influence in moving the candidacy of our party members forward and for their future success.”
The Davao City mayor’s recent maneuvering leading up to the Commission on Elections’ deadline for the substitution of candidates who withdrew their electoral bids have made waves in the political scene, with a faction of the ruling PDP-Laban backed by her father mulling over their next moves.
This PDP-Laban faction said they are “exploring all options,” including their original plan of fielding Sen. Bong Go as president and President Duterte as vice president.