On October 8, the final day of the weeklong registration period for next year’s midterm elections, former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte submitted his candidacy for mayor of Davao City. It is a position that the 79-year-old held for more than two decades prior to his election as president in 2016.
It is from the Davao post that Duterte carved out a reputation as an outspoken political hardman and voluntarily associated himself with the killings of people alleged to be involved in the illegal drug trade.
Now it appears the former president is aiming to make a political comeback in his regional stronghold of Davao, despite recently mulling over a run for the national Senate.
Duterte attracted global attention when he took his anti-drug policies to Malacañang Palace, culminating in an International Criminal Court investigation into thousands of alleged extrajudicial killings on Duterte’s watch.
The former leader is showing no sign of softening his stance, warning in a recent press conference that criminals and “drug pushers” should flee Davao. “If I become mayor, you better leave because if I get you, there will be killings,” he said.
Duterte’s return to frontline politics will be of little surprise to the residents of Davao City. The Duterte brand has never gone away and for many is synonymous with the city, which sits on the southern island of Mindanao.
Duterte’s son, Baste, the incumbent mayor, will run alongside his father as vice mayor.
The former president’s daughter, Sara, served as Davao mayor during 2010-2013 and 2016-2022 before she went on to form a political alliance with the Marcos clan that saw her tapped as the running mate to Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. Together, they stormed to victory in the 2022 presidential election.
Around Davao, it is common to see residents wearing bright T-shirts adorned with Sara’s face, or car bumper stickers featuring the trademark Duterte fist pose. Various pro-Duterte posters and slogans can be seen in convenience stores and eateries dotted around the city.
Among Dabawenyos, there is a tendency to support their own, and support for the Duterte clan is still strong. Over the past year, Duterte has attended numerous “prayer rallies,” including in Davao. These rallies have acted as the bedrock for pro-Duterte grassroots campaigns, and have signaled the growing public rift between the Duterte and Marcos clans.
Signs adorned with slogans including “Dabawenyos are not for sale” and “Protect VP Sara” can be seen perched along the roadsides all over Davao City.
The former is in reference to the opposition to the “People’s Initiative” Charter Change, or “Cha Cha,” which sought to amend the 1987 constitution, allegedly partly by soliciting the signatures of ordinary residents in exchange for cash.
Duterte has used the rallies to accuse Marcos and his allies of using “Cha Cha” to extend his own political lifespan, comparing the move to Marcos’ father’s bloody martial law regime during the 1970s.
The prayer rallies, which have been held in Davao and elsewhere across the Philippines, have seen Duterte launch public attacks on Marcos and his administration, helping scuttle the Duterte-Marcos relationship less than two years following its decisive election victory.
Sara Duterte herself attended one of these rallies, where keynote speakers, including Davao mayor Baste, called for Marcos’ resignation. Rodrigo Duterte himself called Marcos a “drug addict” before redacting the claim. (Marcos lobbed a similar accusation back at Duterte.)
Eventually, the Duterte-Marcos alliance became untenable, culminating with Sara Duterte’s resignation from her position as education secretary in June.
To outside observers, it might seem strange that Duterte would continue on as vice president, but closer inspection reveals the prevalence of personality and patronage over policy and party in the Philippines. With each elected separately, it is not uncommon for the president and vice president to be at political odds with each other.
Rodrigo Duterte’s return to the political frontlines also comes at a time of heightened scrutiny on his family’s relationship with Apollo Quiboloy, the leader of a Philippines-based church, the Kingdom of Jesus Christ,.
A key issue for Sara Duterte in her resignation from the Cabinet was around the Marcos administration’s continuous pursuit of Quiboloy, a televangelist with millions of followers in the Philippines and abroad.
Quiboloy is wanted by the FBI on a raft of charges, including human trafficking, all of which he denies.
Duterte’s close relationship to Quiboloy goes back decades. The pair, both from Davao, have sustained a mutually beneficial connection; an endorsement from a religious leader is invaluable and can turbo-charge a political campaign. Duterte returned the favor by appointing Quiboloy as the “spiritual adviser” to his administration in Malacañang Palace.
The aforementioned prayer rallies were organized by Quiboloy, so perhaps it is no surprise that they often turned into slander matches against his adversary Marcos.
As long as Duterte was president, Quiboloy was considered “untouchable.” That has not sustained under Marcos, whose administration has brought charges of sexual abuse, child abuse, and human trafficking against Quiboloy. This culminated with the arrest of Quiboloy inside his Davao-based compound last month, after weeks of tension and protests on the streets.
It remains to be seen whether Duterte’s return to politics has been motivated in part by a desire to protect and advocate for his long-time friend. He has defended Quiboloy in the past despite the serious allegations made against the self-proclaimed “appointed son of God.”
It is also possible that Duterte’s return will only widen the rift between his family and the Marcos clan ahead of the 2028 presidential election, when Sara Duterte may make a run for the top post.
Whatever Duterte’s motivations, his return speaks to the continuing prominence of a handful of political dynasties in the Philippines and their ability to wield power and influence.
However, it is now up to the people of Davao to decide Duterte’s fate at the polls, which are scheduled for May 12, 2025. Human rights activists have called on Filipino voters to finally turn their back on Duterte and his ally Quiboloy, citing the criminal charges that both face.