She has survived political crises before. She has outlasted enemies. She is leading in presidential polls. But now, Sara Duterte faces a threat that could end her political career entirely.
The Philippine House of Representatives has voted to impeach Vice-President Sara Duterte for a second time, threatening her plan to run for president in 2028. Monday’s vote moves the impeachment process to the Senate for trial, where, if convicted, the daughter of former President Rodrigo Duterte will be disqualified from holding public office.
The 47-year-old is leading early surveys to replace her ally-turned-bitter foe, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Those surveys now mean nothing if the Senate convicts her.
The Charges
The case against the vice-president stemmed from two main allegations: misuse of public funds and public threats against Marcos, his wife, and his cousin, the former House speaker.
Duterte was impeached on the same grounds in 2025, but the Supreme Court blocked it on a technicality before the Senate trial could start. The case was revived this year. Last week, a House committee that looked into the evidence against the vice-president ruled that there were sufficient grounds to impeach her.
Duterte described the case as “nothing more than a scrap of paper” in a formal written response. She refused to appear in committee hearings, which she said had been politically motivated. After the impeachment vote on Monday, Duterte’s defense counsel said in a statement that “the burden now rests on the accusers to substantiate their claims,” according to the law.
The accusers now have to prove their case. But the vote itself was a statement.
The Numbers That Matter
Monday night’s impeachment vote served as a barometer of Marcos’ support in the House. Of the 290 lawmakers in attendance, 257 voted to impeach Duterte — more than the one-third required to advance the case to trial. That is overwhelming.
But unlike in the House, a conviction in the Senate is uncertain. In Philippine politics, which is dominated by patronage and dynastic alliances, House members — elected per legislative district — are generally friendlier to the incumbent president than senators. The country’s 24 senators are elected on the national level, and the Senate is a traditional springboard for those hoping to run for president or vice president in the future.
In the 2025 mid-term vote, where half of the Senate was elected, candidates allied with Duterte fared better than those who ran under Marcos’ coalition. That means the chamber that will try her may be more sympathetic to her cause. The outcome of an impeachment vote will be difficult to predict under the country’s multi-party system with shifting alliances.
The Political War
Duterte announced her intention to run for president in February, much earlier than expected. Marcos is limited by the constitution to a single six-year term. She holds a 17-point lead over her nearest rival based on a survey in March by Manila pollster WR Numero.
In the 2022 elections, Duterte was the survey frontrunner to succeed her father, but she formed an alliance with Marcos and ran for vice-president instead to consolidate their support bases and fend off a reformist wave. The pair won by a landslide. The alliance was supposed to be unbreakable.
Now, it is shattered.
Marcos’ allies in the House, led by his cousin, then Speaker Martin Romualdez, investigated allegations of fund misuse in Duterte’s office. At the height of public scrutiny, Duterte hosted a late-night online press conference where she made a stunning statement. She said she told one person that “if I get killed, go kill BBM [President Marcos], [First Lady] Liza Araneta, and [House Speaker] Martin Romualdez.”
That threat — whether serious or rhetorical — became a cornerstone of the impeachment case.
Then, in March last year, Marcos allowed the International Criminal Court to arrest Rodrigo Duterte and detain him at The Hague, where he now awaits trial for crimes against humanity over the hundreds who died in his so-called war on drugs. The daughter watched her father be taken away. The president who allowed it is now her enemy.
What Comes Next
The impeachment now moves to the Senate for trial. A conviction would disqualify Duterte from holding public office — ending her 2028 presidential bid before it truly begins. An acquittal would leave her politically damaged but still standing, still leading in polls, and still planning to run.
The trial will test the loyalty of senators elected with Duterte’s support. It will test Marcos’ ability to twist arms in a chamber that has historically resisted executive pressure. And it will test whether the Philippines’ impeachment process — rarely used, never simple — can actually remove a vice-president.
Duterte called the case a “scrap of paper.” Her accusers called it justice. The Senate will now decide who is right.
The Bottom Line
The Philippine House of Representatives has voted to impeach Vice-President Sara Duterte for a second time. The vote was 257 to 290 — well above the one-third threshold needed to advance the case to the Senate for trial. Duterte faces allegations of misuse of public funds and making public threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his wife, and his cousin.
Duterte was impeached on the same grounds in 2025, but the Supreme Court blocked it on a technicality. The case was revived this year. Duterte has refused to participate in committee hearings, calling the case politically motivated. She is leading early presidential polls for 2028, but a Senate conviction would disqualify her from holding public office.
Marcos’ allies in the House pushed for the impeachment. The Senate, where Duterte-allied candidates fared better in the 2025 mid-term elections, is less certain to convict. The trial will determine whether the president’s daughter will face the same fate as her father — or survive to run for the highest office in the land.
