On 11 May 2026, the Philippine House of Representatives voted 257 to 25 to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte, daughter of former president Rodrigo Duterte. The charges include the misuse of confidential funds, unexplained wealth, and a death threat made against President Marcos, his wife and his cousin. It is the second impeachment of Sara Duterte: the first, in 2025, was struck down by the Supreme Court on a procedural defect. She becomes the first official in the country's history to be impeached twice.
The case now moves to the Senate, which will sit in judgment. The backdrop is a rupture at the very top of the state. In 2022, Marcos and Sara Duterte, both from families that have long dominated Philippine politics, ran together on a winning ticket. Their alliance broke down as early as 2023, and the rivalry hardened into open confrontation. Rodrigo Duterte, Sara's father, has separately been transferred to The Hague to answer before international justice for acts tied to his anti-drug campaign (2016-2022).
Several points remain disputed. Some actors describe the proceedings as an exercise in constitutional accountability, while others see a manoeuvre to sideline Marcos's main rival ahead of the 2028 presidential election, a race in which Sara Duterte is reported to lead the polls. The Senate outcome is uncertain: the Duterte camp holds more support there, and the election of Cayetano as Senate president, minutes before the House vote, is read by critics as an attempt to block or delay the trial. The Catholic Church, an influential moral voice, has publicly called on the Senate to hold a swift and fair trial.
