The Filipino strongman’s preferred option was to be replaced by his daughter, Sara. But Sara chose to run as the vice-presidential running mate of Bongbong Marcos, the son of the former Filipino dictator, Ferdinand Marcos – who was intent on rewriting history, to portray the Marcos dictatorship as a golden era of progress and stability. The victory of the Marcos–Duterte ticket in the 2022 presidential election represented a fusion of two authoritarian political clans, with worrying implications for Filipino democracy.
