Philippine presidential rivals say Leni Robredo’s ‘pink wave’ won’t stand in their way
- Three hopefuls have doused speculation they will withdraw from the presidential race to improve VP Robredo’s chances of defeating Bongbong Marcos
- But one observer says their decision to stay the course could actually help Robredo, as ‘they take more votes away from Marcos than they do from Robredo’
Three rivals of Philippine presidential candidate Leni Robredo refused to back her campaign on Sunday, dousing speculation they would withdraw from the race to improve her chances of defeating the son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos.
There has been speculation that worse performing candidates were considering pulling out and endorsing Robredo – the incumbent vice-president and only woman in the race – to ensure Marcos Jnr was defeated in the May 9 elections.
The latest Pulse Asia Research survey showed Robredo on 24 per cent with Marcos Jnr on 56 per cent.
But in a vitriolic press conference on Sunday, Francisco Domagoso, Panfilo Lacson and Norberto Gonzales – who are on single digits or less – accused Robredo of trying to get them to withdraw and strip them of support.
“Each of us will continue with our respective presidential campaigns,” Domagoso, a celebrity mayor better known by his screen name Isko Moreno, told reporters at a luxury hotel in Manila. “I’m calling for Leni to withdraw because whatever you’re doing is not effective against Marcos.”
Analysts said it was not clear how many votes Robredo would gain from their exit in the raucous democracy where voter decisions were driven by personality rather than ideology.