The Partido Demokratiko Pilipino (PDP Laban) has drawn a firm political line against legislators supporting the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte, warning that any lawmaker who backs the effort will be barred from seeking the party’s endorsement and may face a PDP-backed opponent in their district.
“They will be blacklisted from running under the PDP banner. And where necessary, PDP will field and support a competitive candidate in their district,” the party said in a statement released Sunday.
The party framed its position not as a threat but as a question of accountability, rejecting what it characterized as a partisan campaign against the vice president.
“PDP will not be a shelter for officials who participate in what we view as a partisan attempt to overturn the will of more than 32 million Filipinos who elected Vice President Sara Duterte,” it said.
“No refuge. No party endorsement. No PDP banner for those who betray the people’s mandate,” the statement added.
PDP Laban is currently led by Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte, Sara’s younger brother, who was appointed party president in April. Baste assumed the mayorship in January following the arrest of their father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, on charges stemming from his administration’s drug war. He had previously been elected Davao City vice mayor with his father as running mate in 2025.
The impeachment push against Vice President Duterte has been advancing steadily in the House of Representatives. The House Committee on Justice unanimously approved the committee report and the Articles of Impeachment on May 4, paving the way for a plenary vote. Committee chairperson Representative Gerville Luistro was set to sponsor the resolution before the full House on Monday, May 11, with 106 votes required to transmit the articles to the Senate.
The two impeachment complaints before the House allege betrayal of public trust and culpable violation of the Constitution, citing the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds, threats made against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his family, and the accumulation of unexplained wealth.
Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III has confirmed the Senate will convene as an impeachment court once the articles arrive from the House.
Sara, for her part, appears unfazed. Speaking before Filipino community members in the Netherlands last week, she said she could continue advocating for Filipinos even from outside government.
She also signaled her political ambitions remain intact. “I’m already a presumptive candidate because I declared my intention to run for the next presidential elections,” she told reporters in The Hague, adding: “We can only pray that there will be a presidential election in 2028 and it will be honest, orderly, and peaceful.”
