Philippine Senate lowers threshold for VP conviction

The Philippine Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, yesterday lowered the number of votes needed to convict Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte, reducing the threshold prosecutors must clear to secure a guilty verdict.

The court ruled that only senator-judges that are able to participate in the trial should be counted when determining the threshold for conviction. Four of the 24 senator-judges have been unable to participate in the proceedings and cannot vote.

The constitution requires a two-thirds vote to convict an impeached official, so the decision means prosecutors need 14 votes instead of 16 to gain a conviction. The decision could have broader implications if more senator-judges become unable to participate in the proceedings.

Philippine senators, acting judges of an impeachment court, pray at the impeachment trial of Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte in Pasay, Metro Manila, on July 7.

Photo: Reuters

Thirteen lawmakers voted in favor of the ruling, while six, most of whom are seen as allies of Duterte, did not participate in the proceedings. One senator voted against lowering the vote threshold.

Four senators have been unable to take part in Duterte’s impeachment trial due to legal actions against some, which include a scandal in a multibillion-dollar public works program and the International Criminal Court’s investigation into a bloody “war on drugs” led by Duterte’s father, former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte.

“The vote may also offer a glimpse of how the final [impeachment] voting could go, although nothing is assured at this time. Senators still have to weigh the evidence, and, admittedly, weigh public opinion,” University of Makati public administration professor Ederson Tapia said. “But if I were Vice President Duterte, I would be concerned.”

The impeachment trial follows a high-profile fallout between Sara Duterte and her former ally and running mate Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and the outcome could shape the 2028 presidential election, which Sara Duterte intends to contest.

Marcos is limited by the constitution to a single term in office and is expected to back a successor.

Sara Duterte, a frontrunner in early opinion polls, faces a ban from holding political office if convicted by the court and would be out of the presidential running.

She stands accused of misusing public funds, amassing unexplained wealth and threatening the lives of Marcos, the first lady and a former House speaker. Sara Duterte denies wrongdoing.