Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte has been impeached by the lower house of Congress after lawmakers, many of whom are allies of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, signed a petition to remove her from office.
While specifics have not been divulged, the impeachment vote on Wednesday follows a string of complaints accusing Duterte of crimes ranging from the misuse of public funds to plotting Marcos’s assassination. Duterte has consistently denied wrongdoing and has described moves against her as a political vendetta.
“Having been filed by more than one-third of the membership of the House of Representatives, or a total of 215 [out of 306] members, … the motion is approved,” House Speaker Martin Romualdez told lawmakers.
Her fate is now in the hands of 24 senators, two-thirds of whom must vote for her impeachment for her to be removed from office. Although a trial date has not been set, she will remain vice president during the impeachment proceedings.
Duterte is the fourth official in the Philippines to be impeached after former President Joseph Estrada, an ombudsman and a former Supreme Court chief justice.
or years, Duterte was primed to succeed her controversial father, Rodrigo, as president, but she eventually stepped aside to back Marcos, running as vice president on his ticket. Together, they won a landslide victory in 2022.
But the alliance has since imploded, giving way to a months-long public spat that has seen the trading of wild accusations.
In November, Duterte delivered an expletive-laden speech saying she had ordered someone to kill Marcos if she herself was assassinated.
She has accused Marcos and his wife of corruption, weak leadership and trying to muzzle her because of speculation she may seek the presidency in 2028.
