Robredo rules out 2028 national bid, eyes Naga reelection

ALBAY, Philippines — Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo on Tuesday, April 21, thumbed down calls for her to run for a national post, saying she will possibly seek reelection in her city in 2028 instead.

“Dae na. Sigurado na ako sa sarili ko na hindi na ako ma-national…. Aware man ako na may mga gusto mag dalagan pa ako, bako man ako solo na may capacity na mag lead. In fact, tg-iisip ko na sisay man ako, su tig-gigibo ko kaito na vice president ako garo ngunyan harayo na sa horizon ko na mabalik pa ako sa national,” the former Vice President said in an interview with local radio station RMN DWNX Naga, when asked if she would run for a national post in 2028.

(Not anymore. I am already certain that I will no longer run for a national post…. I am aware that there are those who still want me to run, but for me, I am not the only one with the capacity to lead. In fact, when I think about it, the things I was doing back when I was vice president — right now, it seems returning to the national level is far from my horizon). 

Robredo had said as much in February, when asked about a possible presidential run days after Vice President Sara Duterte declared her 2028 presidential bid. Speculation about Robredo running for president persisted after her 2016 elections rival, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., had an event in Naga also around that time.

Robredo reiterated on Tuesday that she will focus more on what she promised to achieve for Naga City, saying that the three-year term as mayor is too short to finish all that they started. She said that she will probably seek re-election as the city mayor (READ: Has Leni Robredo decided on a 2028 presidential run?). 

“Sa hiling ko dae matatapos gabos ta sa hiling ko considerably achieve ta man an mga tg set sight ta pero beyond that kadakol pa an gigibuhon. Up to 2028 lang ito, sa holing kon ang three years haliputon. Haliputon siya na panahon para magibo gabos. Most probably ma-seek pa ako nin second term,” she added. 

(The way I see it, not everything [we promised] will be finished; while I think we will have considerably achieved what we set our sights on, beyond that, there is still a lot to do. Most probably, I will seek a second term). 

Robredo cited bureaucratic hurdles as a primary reason for wanting to stay on as Naga City mayor.

“It’s very frustrating that there are so many things I want to do that I cannot rush because I need to navigate the bureaucracy, and many things are also out of my control,” she explained. 

Her late husband, former interior secretary Jesse Robredo, also previously served as the city’s mayor for several terms. Jesse is widely recognized as a paragon of local governance, leaving a lasting legacy particularly in Naga City and the entire Bicol region.

Despite repeated declarations that she will focus on Naga, Robredo remains as among the top choices in early presidential preference polls, along with Vice President Sara Duterte, according to OCTA Research president Ranjit Rye. 

Citing an unreleased survey, Rye noted that Duterte currently leads with 33% of the prospective vote, while Robredo comes in second at 21%.

“The question from our survey was who is best to succeed BBM in 2028, and we have a list of ten people who got numbers. The top two are Vice President Sara Duterte at 33% and Mayor [Leni Robredo at] 21%. Out of our long list of politically relevant individuals, our kababayans only registered a huge preference for huge names and some symbolic preferences for the others,” Rye said in an interview with One News.

OCTA has yet to release the full results of the latest presidential preference survey, pending finalization. – Rappler.com