VP Duterte impeachment trial looms over midterm elections

Campaigning has begun for the Philippine mid-term elections, which could determine the political future of impeached Vice President Sara Duterte.

Duterte was impeached by the House of Representatives on charges including "violation of the constitution, betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption, and other high crimes".

Her alliance with President Ferdinand Marcos has imploded, with impeachment charges initiated by allies of the President, including his son, Ilocos Norte Representative Sandro Marcos.

The Vice President's looming impeachment trial is expected to shape much of the midterm election's discourse and rhetoric.

Lawmakers believe Duterte's impeachment trial will be an election issue, with House Assistant Majority Leader Amparo Maria Zamora stating it is a test for all candidates' stance for the nation.

1-RIDER Party List Representative Rodge Gutierrez, also an impeachment prosecutor, added that it should be welcomed as an election issue.

Senate President Francis Escudero stated that the impeachment trial will "almost surely" not conclude before a new Congress takes over on July 28, and may possibly begin after the President's State of the Nation Address in July.

Sixteen votes in the 24-seat Senate are needed to convict Duterte, which would bar her from public office and a presidential run she says she is "seriously considering".

The May 12 elections will see Filipinos choose 12 new senators, a party-list representative, and over 18,000 local officials nationwide.