Who is Marcos endorsing in 2028?

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is “certainly” endorsing a presidential candidate in 2028 even as he made it very clear on Friday, August 14, that a decision is far, far away. “Surveys are already being run to compare the candidates, this president and vice president, and that vice president and president, and we have the numbers. Well, they’re interesting, but I don’t know how useful they are. Only because it’s far too early,” said Marcos in a forum with foreign correspondents in Manila. Marcos’ term is set to expire on June 30, 2028, with presidential elections set for May the same year. The Philippine president, son and namesake of the late dictator, has made it very clear that he intends to step down on time, despite rumors — including those from his own estranged sister — that purport otherwise. “I will certainly endorse a candidate in the 2028 elections. Who that is, I cannot tell you because even I don’t know. It’s a little early for that. And we don’t know. So far, we have only one person who has put their hand in the ring. So, that’s a very, very early one in the process,” said Marcos. Thus far, only Vice President Sara Duterte, Marcos’ erstwhile ally, has announced her 2028 presidential dreams. But posturing from both the Marcos-affiliated camp or the opposition camp known to be adverserial to the Duterte clan has intensified in the past months, following Duterte’s very early announcement. Behind the scenes, talks have been preliminary and exploratory, at least, according to sources and operators from the wide spectrum of Philippine politics. But many — from both the Marcos and opposition camps — are in agreement that a tactical alliance must be made, if only to stand a chance against the Duterte juggernaut. Marcos said the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), the party that he belongs to and was his platform in the 2022 elections, is surely going to enter alliances with other parties for the 2028 elections — but again, it’s too early to say anything certain. “There are so many political events that are still going to happen between now and that time. And so, it’s very hard for me to, for myself, even to make a decision. I would say that if I decided now, it would be premature. We have to see how things really shape up. Sa ngayon, puro haka-haka lang. Baka tatakbo si ganito, tatakbo si ganyan (For now, everything is speculative. This person might run, that person might run),” he added. Thus far, Duterte — daughter of the former president whom Marcos has since sent to the International Criminal Court in The Hague to face charges of crimes against humanity — has been leading in early polling for 2028. The closest contender, if some surveys are to be believed, is the politician who beat Marcos in 2016 but whom he defeated in 2022: Naga Mayor Leni Robredo. But Marcos downplayed these polls, when asked. “I don’t change my decision because of the survey. I don’t change direction because of the survey. I take a decision because what I feel is the proper decision to make,” he said. “If your numbers aren’t good, I wish they were better. If your numbers are good, then you said great. But once that stays in my mind maybe for a minute or two, then I get back to work after that,” he added. He skipped directly answering a part of the question he was asked, however: Does he worry about Duterte’s lead in polling and the Philippines’ “history of former presidents being jailed and pursued by their predecessors?” Sara Duterte has been impeached twice by a Marcos-allied House. The Senate is currently hearing her impeachment trial. – Rappler.com How does this make you feel?