Former President Rodrigo Duterte will still run for mayor in Davao City in the 2025 elections.
John Rex Laudiangco, spokesperson of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), confirmed on Tuesday, October 8, that Former President Duterte did not withdraw his certificate of candidacy (COC) in Davao City.
Laudiangco stressed that a candidate needs to withdraw his earlier COC if he/she plans to run for a different position.
The COMELEC official made the remark amidst reports that the Former President will withdraw from the mayoral race of Davao City, and instead run for senator.
"Dapat bago matapos yung filing (of COCs) natin, may ma-withdraw na isa. Otherwise, kapag nagkaroon ng dalawang COC patungkol sa isang kandidato, magkaiba ng position, cancelled iyan pareho," Laudiangco told reporters.
Honeylet Avanceña, the common-law wife of Former President Duterte, and Former Executive Sec. Salvador Medialdea also dismissed the reports as fake news.
COMELEC also released the names of the 187 Senatorial aspirants who filed their COCs from October 1 to October 8, and the list does not include Former President Duterte.
The Former President filed his COC on Monday, October 7, at the COMELEC Davao District Office.
