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Duterte withdraws from 2022 Senate race: official
"The President has filed his withdrawal from the Senatorial elections," James Jimenez, spokesman for the Commission on Elections office, said on Twitter.
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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (center) gives a peace sign with members of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) during the Ceremonial Confirmation of the Bangsamoro Organic Law Plebescite Law Canvass Results and Oath-taking of Transition Authority at the Malacanang palace in Manila on February 22, 2019. (AFP/Noel Cellis)
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hilippines President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday withdrew his candidacy for the 2022 Senate race, the government elections monitor said, a month after he made a last-minute entry into the contest.
"The President has filed his withdrawal from the Senatorial elections," James Jimenez, spokesman for the Commission on Elections office, said on Twitter.
Earlier in November, Duterte's chosen successor announced his withdrawal from the 2022 presidential race, saying it was "not yet my time".
Senator Christopher Go, a close aide to the president, entered the contest for the country's highest office two days before the November 15 deadline, after previously registering for the vice presidential race.
His sudden exit narrows the field of candidates vying to replace Duterte, who is constitutionally barred from seeking a second six-year term. He is running for the Senate.
Go said his decision to withdraw was also to avoid causing "more problems" for Duterte, who he professed to love "more than as a father".
Most analysts had given Go little chance of success in the May election, though he was the most likely candidate to protect Duterte from criminal charges in the Philippines, and an International Criminal Court investigation into his deadly drug war.
