Magdalo Block Distinguishes Candidates by Whether They’ll Advocate For or Against Supporters
Former Senator Trillanes Announces Endorsement Of Risa Hontiveros Using Criteria That Are Both Inspiring And Vaguely Undefined
MANILA Former senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV explained Wednesday why the Magdalo bloc was endorsing Senator Risa Hontiveros over former vice president and 2022 presidential candidate Leni Robredo for the 2028 presidential race.
“The one we want to push for the presidency is Senator Risa Hontiveros. She has the qualifications and truly stands firm, fights,” Trillanes said after attending a House Committee on Justice hearing on Vice President Duterte’s impeachment.
He then introduced what amounts to a new political campaign metric: “In other words, Senator Risa will fight for you. With Mayor Leni, you will fight for her.”
The Campaign Philosophy Introduced
When pressed to explain the distinction, Trillanes clarified: “Both of them are good public servants. But the difference is, with Mayor Leni, you will fight for her. With Senator Risa, she will fight for you.”
Which is either profoundly insightful or completely meaningless, depending on one’s tolerance for political rhetoric versus substantive policy analysis.
Asked if Hontiveros was on board with the Magdalo endorsement, Trillanes indicated that “our talks with Senator Risa are continuing,” which is political language for: “we haven’t sealed the deal yet.”
Robredo, who ran for president in 2022 and finished a distant second to President Marcos, has not explicitly declared her intentions for 2028. Trillanes suggested that should she decide not to run, “it would be better if Mayor Leni would endorse either Senator Bam Aquino or Senator Risa. That way, the support for Mayor Leni would truly be transferred to them.”
This is campaign strategy based on the logical assumption that endorsements represent transferable political capital, which is either obviously true or completely naive depending on one’s view of voter behavior.
References to Senate records and historical electoral data confirm that 2028 presidential positioning has begun despite the current administration barely settling into its tenure.
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SOURCE: https://mb.com.ph/article/10915042/philippines/national/trillanes-explains-his-choice-of-hontiveros-over-robredo-for-2028-palace-race