Sara runs for vice president; Marcos party adopts her as candidate

CEBU, Philippines — Presidential daughter and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Caprio ended all speculations by filing her certificate of candidacy (COC) for vice president on Saturday, November 13, 2021, two days before the deadline for substitutions for the 2022 polls.

She was named substitute for Lakas-Christian-Muslim Democrat vice presidential aspirant Lyle Uy.

Uy withdrew his COC also on Saturday while Atty. Charo Munsayac filed Duterte-Carpio's COC on her behalf.

Duterte-Carpio’s COC was signed in Davao City Saturday morning and was brought immediately to Manila by her representatives.

Lakas-CMD reportedly gave the mayor three COC documents to choose from – president, vice president, and senator – and she eventually chose to run for VP.

Earlier, she resigned from Hugpong ng Pagbabago, the regional party she founded and led until this week, and joined Lakas-CMD.

As this developed, the party of presidential aspirant, former senator Bongbong Marcos, Partido Federal ng Pilipinas, adopted Duterte-Carpio as its vice presidential candidate.

Lakas-CMD president and House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez said that Duterte-Carpio and Marcos have been in talks for a team-up for the 2022 elections.

Duterte-Carpio initially filed her COC for reelection as Davao City mayor but eventually withdrew her candidacy on November 9, fueling speculation that she will run for a national post.

The move mirrors her father's surprise run for the Palace, as President Duterte also initially rejected the idea of a bid for Malacañang.

Despite calls from supporters, Duterte-Carpio said in August that she would not be running as her father declared that he would run for the vice presidency. She added that the two agreed that only one Duterte should run for a national post.

On October 2, though, the chief executive made the surprise announcement that he would be retiring from politics and returning to private life in 2022.

Duterte-Carpio consistently topped Pulse Asia's pre-elections surveys — 20 percent of respondents in a poll conducted in September said they would vote for her — even after she declared that she had no interest in running.

In a statement issued by her spokesperson, Liloan, Cebu Mayor Christina Garcia Frasco, Duterte-Carpio said that she "continues to listen to the pulse of the Filipino people" amid the calls for her to run in early October. JMO (FREEMAN)