Sara Duterte facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sara Duterte
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Official portrait, 2022
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| 15th Vice President of the Philippines | |
| Assumed office June 30, 2022 |
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| President | Bongbong Marcos |
| Preceded by | Leni Robredo |
| 38th Secretary of Education | |
| In office June 30, 2022 – July 19, 2024 |
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| President | Bongbong Marcos |
| Preceded by | Leonor Briones |
| Succeeded by | Sonny Angara |
| 21st Mayor of Davao City | |
| In office June 30, 2016 – June 30, 2022 |
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| Vice Mayor |
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| Preceded by | Rodrigo Duterte |
| Succeeded by | Sebastian Duterte |
| In office June 30, 2010 – June 30, 2013 |
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| Vice Mayor | Rodrigo Duterte |
| Preceded by | Rodrigo Duterte |
| Succeeded by | Rodrigo Duterte |
| Vice Mayor of Davao City | |
| In office June 30, 2007 – June 30, 2010 |
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| Mayor | Rodrigo Duterte |
| Preceded by | Luis Bonguyan |
| Succeeded by | Rodrigo Duterte |
| Co-Vice Chair of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict | |
| In office May 10, 2023 – July 19, 2024 Serving with Eduardo Año
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| President | Bongbong Marcos |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Vacant |
| Chairperson of Lakas–CMD | |
| In office November 17, 2021 – May 19, 2023 |
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| President | Martin Romualdez |
| Preceded by | Bong Revilla |
| Succeeded by | Bong Revilla |
| Chairperson of Hugpong ng Pagbabago | |
| Assumed office February 23, 2018 |
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| President | Claude Bautista |
| President of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization | |
| In office February 8, 2023 – July 19, 2024 |
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| Vice President | Romaizah Salleh |
| Preceded by | Chan Chun Sing |
| Succeeded by | Sonny Angara |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Sara Zimmerman Duterte
May 31, 1978 Davao City, Philippines |
| Political party | HNP (2018–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
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| Spouse |
Mans Carpio
(m. 2007) |
| Relations | Duterte family |
| Children | 4 |
| Parents |
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| Alma mater | |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Philippines |
| Branch/service | Philippine Army |
| Years of service | 2009–present (PAR) |
| Rank | Colonel |
Sara Zimmerman Duterte-Carpio (born May 31, 1978), also known as Inday Sara, is a Filipino lawyer and politician. She is currently the 15th vice president of the Philippines. She is the third woman to hold this position. She is also the third vice president from Mindanao and the youngest in Philippine history. Sara Duterte is the daughter of the 16th president, Rodrigo Duterte. Before becoming vice president, she served as the mayor of Davao City from 2016 to 2022, and earlier from 2010 to 2013. She was also Davao City's vice mayor from 2007 to 2010.
On February 5, 2025, the House of Representatives voted to start the process of impeaching Duterte. This made her the first sitting vice president in the Philippines to face such a process.
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Early Life and Education
Sara Vicenta Zimmerman Duterte was born in Davao City on May 31, 1978. She is the second child of Rodrigo Duterte, who later became president, and Elizabeth Zimmerman. Her mother was a flight attendant.
Sara studied at San Pedro College. She earned a degree in Respiratory Therapy in 1999. When she became mayor of Davao City, she shared that she originally wanted to be a pediatrician, not a politician. Later, she studied law at San Sebastian College – Recoletos and graduated in May 2005. She passed the Philippine Bar Examination in 2005. For a few months, she worked as a court attorney for Supreme Court Associate Justice Romeo Callejo Sr.
Vice Mayor of Davao City
Before becoming mayor, Duterte served as the vice mayor of Davao City. She was elected in 2007, taking over from Luis Bonguyan. She served alongside her father, Rodrigo Duterte, who was then the mayor. Her term as vice mayor lasted until 2010. During this time, she also worked as a regional officer for the National Movement of Young Legislators.
As vice mayor, she started a project called ‘Inday Para sa Barangay’. This project aimed to bring government services to different communities (barangays) in the city every year. When she became mayor, this project continued and was renamed the Caravan of Government Services.
Mayor of Davao City
In 2010, Duterte was elected mayor of Davao City. She became the first female mayor of the city. She was also the youngest person to be elected to this role, at 32 years old. She won against Prospero Nograles, who was a political rival of her father. She promised to always be "useful and to serve the country." She took over the position her father Rodrigo had held for more than 20 years. During her first term, she also served on the National Executive Board of the League of Cities Philippines.
On December 2, 2010, President Benigno Aquino III appointed her as the Chairperson of the Regional Development Council (RDC) Region XI. She was the first woman and the first person from the government sector to hold this position since the council was reorganized in 1986. Under her leadership, the Davao Region’s economy grew from 3.9 percent in 2011 to 7.1 percent in 2012.
On July 1, 2011, Duterte gained national attention during a demolition of shanties in Davao City. She had asked the court and the demolition team to delay the demolition, but a sheriff named Abe Andres refused.
Duterte chose not to run for re-election in 2013. This allowed her father Rodrigo to run for mayor again. She also turned down her father's offer to run for a seat in Congress.
Duterte ran for mayor of Davao City again in the 2016 elections and won. She succeeded her father for the second time. Her older brother Paolo and later Bernard Al-ag served as her vice mayors. She ran for re-election in the 2019 elections and won again.
After her father won the 2016 presidential election, Duterte started the "Tapang at Malasakit" (Courage and Compassion) movement. This group was made up of her father's supporters and allies.
On February 23, 2018, she launched a new regional political party called Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP). This party was approved on July 4, 2018. HNP also worked as an alliance, supporting candidates from different parties in the senatorial election. Nine out of 13 senatorial candidates supported by HNP won in that election.
Policies as Mayor
Duterte worked to promote Davao City as a place for tourism and investment. In 2011, she introduced the slogan "Davao: Life is Here." During her second time as mayor, she started Byaheng DO30. This project included 30 plans to improve ten key areas. These areas included education, health, and disaster risk reduction.
She also created the Peace 911 program. This program aimed to address the local communist rebellion by bringing government services to remote areas. Her administration also set up the Kean Gabriel Hotline. This hotline allowed people to report child abuse anonymously.
As Davao City mayor, Duterte had a very high approval rating of 93%. This was reported by an independent survey group.
Vice Presidency (2022–present)
Candidacy and Campaign
| Presidential styles of Sara Duterte |
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| Reference style | Her Excellency, The Honorable |
| Spoken style | Your Excellency |
| Alternative style | Madame Vice President |
Many people thought Duterte might run for president after her important role in the 2019 elections. On July 9, 2021, she said she was open to running for president. However, on September 9, she said she would not run. This was because her father, the sitting president, planned to run for vice president. They agreed that only one of them should run for a national position. Her father later did not file his candidacy for vice president. She also did not file for any national position, choosing to run for re-election as mayor of Davao City.
However, she later changed her mind. On November 9, she withdrew her candidacy for Davao City mayor. Her brother Sebastian then ran for mayor instead. On November 11, she left her party, Hugpong ng Pagbabago, and joined Lakas–CMD. Six days later, she became the chairperson of Lakas–CMD. On November 19, she rejoined Hugpong ng Pagbabago as its chairperson.
On November 13, she officially filed her candidacy for Vice President of the Philippines. She ran under the Lakas–CMD party for the 2022 Philippine vice presidential election. She said she did this to meet her supporters halfway, as they had been asking her to run for president. She was then supported by Partido Federal ng Pilipinas, becoming the running mate of their presidential candidate, former senator Bongbong Marcos.
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Duterte won the election and became the vice president-elect. She received 32,208,417 votes. This was a large win, with a lead of 22 million votes over her closest opponent, Senator Francis Pangilinan. She was the first vice president to be elected by a majority of votes since the 1986 elections. She also received the most votes for any office in a single-winner election in Philippine history.
She is the first vice president from Davao City. At 44 years old, she is the youngest person to become vice president. She is the third woman to hold the position, after Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Leni Robredo. She is also the third vice president who is a child of a president. She and Bongbong Marcos were the first presidential ticket to win together since the 2004 elections.
On May 11, 2022, Marcos announced that Duterte agreed to join his cabinet as Secretary of Education. She had earlier shown interest in becoming the Secretary of National Defense. Duterte explained that she chose Education to avoid "intrigues" about her loyalty to the new government. She was sworn into office in Davao City on June 19, 2022. Her term officially began on June 30, as stated in the Constitution. At her request, her former professor, Associate Justice Ramon Paul Hernando, administered her oath. This was the first time a vice president's oath-taking was held in Mindanao.
Policies as Vice President
On her first day as vice president, Duterte opened satellite offices for the Office of the Vice President. These offices were set up in cities like Cebu City, Dagupan, Davao City, Tacloban, Tandag, and Zamboanga City. The main office of the Vice President was moved from Quezon City to Mandaluyong. This new location is closer to the Department of Education headquarters, where she also works as Secretary. Duterte plans to create a permanent office for the vice president.
As the Secretary of Education, Duterte was responsible for planning the return to mandatory face-to-face classes. These classes had been paused since 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. She issued an order allowing schools to choose between five-day in-person classes or a mix of in-person and online learning until October 31. After that, mandatory in-person classes would begin on November 2. She also said that school uniforms and student vaccination would be optional for the school year. She also considered making blended learning a permanent option for some schools. Before taking office, Duterte also supported bringing back the mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program.
On August 3, 2022, Duterte launched the Libreng Sakay Program (Free Rides Program). This program, in partnership with the Department of Transportation, provides free bus rides to help ease traffic during busy hours. It started with five buses in different cities, including Metro Manila and Davao City.
In March 2023, Duterte signed an order to ensure teachers focus on their main work. This order prevents teachers from joining volunteer or extra activities during school hours. In May 2023, she said she wanted to include mandatory scouting in the K-12 curriculum for young Filipino boys. This is to help them develop a love for their country. She also warned communist rebels, saying their "protracted war" must end.
On May 19, 2023, Duterte resigned from Lakas–CMD. She stated that her leadership "cannot be poisoned by political toxicity."
Impeachment
On February 5, 2025, the House of Representatives voted to impeach Duterte. The measure passed with 215 lawmakers voting in favor. This was more than the 102 votes needed.
Personal Life
Duterte has been married since October 27, 2007, to fellow lawyer Manases "Mans" R. Carpio. They met while she was studying at San Beda College. News reports often mention they have three children, but Duterte stated in July 2024 that they have four children. Manases is a nephew of former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales.
Duterte also hosted television programs like Una Ka BAI and Byaheng DO30 on GMA Davao. The latter show also aired across Mindanao and internationally.
From 2013 to 2016, when she was not in politics, Duterte worked as a lawyer. She was a partner at Carpio & Duterte Lawyers. She also passed a program for future judges. In 2014, Duterte was elected as one of the governors of the Philippine Red Cross. She is also a reserve officer in the Armed Forces of the Philippines, holding the rank of colonel since March 11, 2020.
In October 2015, she shaved her head. This was to encourage her father to run for president in the 2016 Philippine presidential election, as he was hesitant.
See also
In Spanish: Sara Duterte para niños
- Hoya indaysarae, a plant species named after her
