MANILA (UPDATED) — Vice President Sara Duterte on Monday said she endorsed senatorial candidates Sen. Imee Marcos and Rep. Camille Villar — two Marcos-linked candidates — because they are “united by a common vision.”

Sara Duterte endorses Imee Marcos' Senate reelection bid

Camille Villar still part of Alyansa despite reported Sara Duterte endorsement: Tiangco

Sen. Marcos earlier bolted from her brother President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas senatorial slate, while Villar is still part of the coalition as of last week.

“The #Duter10 senatorial candidates, running under former President Rodrigo R. Duterte's PDP Laban, together with reelectionist Senator Imee Marcos and Representative Camille Villar, are united by a common vision—a peaceful and prosperous Philippines,” Duterte said in a statement.

“This vision is solid enough to break through the walls of the existing political division in the country,” she said.

The President and the Vice President — who ran under their UniTeam coalition in 2016 — had a bitter separation last year after their tandem was marred with allegations of internal power struggles and allegations of corruption.

Duterte resigned from Marcos Jr.’s Cabinet in mid-2024, shortly before the House of Representatives launched congressional investigations into supposed questionable disbursement of the Office of the Vice President’s confidential funds.

In late 2024, Duterte said she has contracted assassins to kill the President and some of his family members should an alleged kill plot against her succeed.

The political feud worsened in March 2025 after the Marcos Jr. administration cooperated with the Interpol to arrest former President Rodrigo Duterte — the vice president’s father — in connection with charges of crimes agains humanity filed before the International Criminal Court.

'ISANG KARANGALAN'

Imee Marcos later thanked Duterte for her endorsement, even as she insisted that she is unperturbed by her poor performance in pre-election surveys.

"Gumawa nga ng endorsement, nagpapasalamat ako kay VP Sara at in-endorse ako. At isang karangalan, masaya ako dun. Kilala naman niya ako noon pa at sana sa lalong madaling panahon, makaikot kami ng VisMin, ng Visayas at Mindanao. Kung saan, malakas na malakas pa rin ang Pamilya Duterte," she said.

Of the surveys, she said: "Saksakan ng dami ng surveys ngayon."

"Kapag tinignan mo nang tinignan, ang totoo, ang senador ngayon eh dikit-dikit at halos pare-pareho ang score," she added. "Kaya hindi mo malalaman kung sino ang pasok, sino ang hindi."

'A DESPERATE MOVE'

Meanwhile, Kabataan Party List Representative Raoul Manuel called Duterte's endorsement a "desperate" move to avoid conviction in her impeachment trial.

"Sa bahagi ng impeached Vice President, kailangan niya ng sapat na bilang para hindi siya i-convict kapag matuloy na ang impeachment trial sa Senado. Kaya tingin ko ang mga ine-endorso niya, 'yun 'yung mga tiyak siya na hindi siya iko-convict. Ang pag-endorse niya, nagpapakita 'yun ng desperation para isalba ang kanyang sarili," he said.

House Deputy Majority Leader and La Union 1st District Representative Paolo Ortega shared the view that Duterte’s move could be a "strategy" to have more senator judges on her side once the Senate sits as an impeachment court. Nonetheless, he expressed confidence that the prosecution’s evidence against the VP is "strong."

"Malakas po 'yung mga ebidensya, kasi nga nakita na po natin 'yan during the hearings po ng Good Gov, saka noong mga nakaraang briefings, saka during the budget. Pero, sabi ko nga po, hindi mo maiiwas na isipin na baka mabigyan po ng impluwensya, at magkaroon po ng impluwensya, seeing lalo kung mayroon silang maipanalo o madagdagan ng suporta dahil sa endorsement nila," Ortega said.

"Definitely, 'yun ang strategy nila. Ang nakikita ko lang dito, 'pag nanalo 'yung in-endorso, parang ini-impluwensyahan nila 'yung mga senator-judges, which is taliwas naman po sa tamang gagawin," he added. "Pero sa akin naman po ang obligasyon ng mga senator-judges ay sa taumbayan, hindi po sa nag-iisang tao lang o politiko. Ang accountability nila ay sa taumbayan at makikita ng buong Pilipinas during the impeachment kung paano po nila i-handle itong mga ganitong proceedings natin."

Manuel, meanwhile, pointed out that if the administration continues to support the candidacy of Imee Marcos and Villar, after VP Duterte’s endorsement, it could be inconsistent with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s previous claims about his Senate slate.

"Sa bahagi ng slate ng Alyansa, tingin natin dito rin ipinapakita kung gaano kabuhaghag 'yung kanilang pagkakaisa. Kasi noong simula ng kampanya ang kine-claim ng nakaupong Pangulo, 'yun daw 'yung slate na walang bahid ng pagiging konektado sa mga berdugo, sa mga duguan 'yung kamay, ganyan. So, paano na ito ngayon? …Hindi na rin nagiging consistent kahit mismo 'yung nakaupong pangulo doon sa mga batayan, bakit 'yun 'yung mga bahagi ng kanyang admin slate… Parang gulo-gulo na eh," the Kabataan solon explained.

"Kaya sana mas maging maliwanag sa mga kababayan natin kung ano ba talaga yung basis, bakit nagsama-sama 'yung mga ito, para ba talaga sa taong bayan o para lang doon sa kung sino 'yung mga nag-i-endorse sa kanila?" he added. -- with reports from RG Cruz and Vivienne Gulla, ABS-CBN News